Shooting Star
by Kanti
Summary: When nuclear terrorists threaten Los Angeles, the spies are teamed up with the NSA's top agent. But Sam begins to suspect that people are hiding things from them, and this villain could be in a different league altogether. (It's all over, folks)
1. Chapter One

Shooting Star

Prologue

Russia – Undisclosed Nuclear Disposal Facility – 12:30 am

Phillip carefully removed the last bolt holding the warhead onto the rocket. He set his tools aside and motioned his assistant to slowly back the dolly away a few inches. This was the twelfth missile he'd dismantled, but it was nerve-wracking nonetheless. Few things made him more nervous than sitting next to enough nuclear material to level the base, surrounding countryside, and several towns. The only thing that made him more nervous was when his wife got really mad. Now that was truly scary.

The assistant backed the dolly away from the missile a few inches, and stopped when the warhead came away enough for Phillip to reach in with his tools. A cluster of wires still connected the warhead to the missile, so Phillip reached for the wire cutters. Normally just cutting the wires would be risky, but the batteries had long since been disconnected. A few snips later the warhead was completely disconnected, and he signaled the assistant to back the dolly up further. Once the warhead was what he felt was a safe distance from the missile, he told the assistant to turn the dolly around and they both headed for the cargo door at one end of the room. The door noisily opened and several soldiers stepped aside to let them pass. Once they were inside, the door closed behind them and the soldiers checked their radiation tags and passed Geiger counters over them and the warhead. Once certain the technicians were clean enough, the soldiers waved them into a clean room where they disposed of their lab clothes and put on fresh ones. Phillip and the assistant took their places with the warhead, and the soldiers formed a tight formation around them. The cargo door on the other side of the room opened into a long tunnel that lead to the final disposal facility, where the nuclear components would be separated and stored in one of the most secure places in Russia. The missile itself would either be burned or retrofitted for the space industry, but that wasn't Phillip's concern.

All at once, Phillip, the assistant, the dolly, and the soldiers started down the tunnel. The barren concrete walls provided no comfort, because this place was designed to contain an "accident" should one ever occur. Aside from the ventilation, conduits, and lights that ran along the ceiling, nothing adorned the concrete except for safety warnings and markers painted at intervals on the walls and floor. Their footsteps echoed down the empty corridor, and the constant crackle of the Geiger counter reminded them of their dangerous package. Just another day at work, Phillip thought. Soldiers with guns and a 150-megaton warhead on its way to destruction. I'll never be at peace until all of these cursed things are gone forever. Then maybe I can focus on peaceful applications for nuclear science. But who am I kidding? By then I'll be old enough to retire!

Phillip's train of though was cut short by the sound of something metallic landing behind the group. The soldiers spun around in a flash and aimed their rifles at the sound. Phillip turned around and saw a canister spewing a noxious-looking cloud. The soldiers grabbed Phillip and his assistant and the dolly, and just as they began to sprint down the corridor, several more canisters landed in front of them, and more behind and to the sides. Within moments the soldiers were choking on the fumes, and then things got worse. Phillip heard several soft _thumps_ around them, and saw armed men with gas masks sliding down ropes. They quickly subdued the guards, who were so weak they couldn't even radio for help. Phillip turned to his assistant, but he was already unconscious. The fumes burned inside Phillip's nose and lungs and made him feel violently nauseous. But his will was strong, and he willed his legs to carry him to the attackers who were laying their hands on the dolly, determined not to let them steal the warhead. One of them, whom Phillip guessed was the leader through his hazy vision and clouded mind, stood in his way and faced him.

"Forgive me, comrade," he said. "This is for the greater good." The man smashed the butt of his rifle across Phillip's face, and his world went black.

Chapter One

Sam's House – 11:00 pm

Sam slept fitfully. Too much caffeine and too much studying for a week had wrecked her sleeping habits, and four or five hours of sleep a night wasn't doing much for her during the day, either. She lay on her back and tried to calm her mind. She let her worries about grades and projects and boys slip away into nothingness, and slowly, imperceptibly a near-invisible gray fog formed behind her eyes. She felt like she was lying on a blanket of air, her movements sluggish and her thoughts scattered. She started dreaming about being on the longest slide she'd ever seen. She could almost feel herself lean forward and slide down the polished steel surface. The slide twisted and turned as it descended towards the edge of the world, and Sam felt like a little kid again. She felt the wind rushing by and her hair streaming behind her. Then something leaked into Sam's consciousness. Hey wait this is a dream. I can't feel wind in a dream. And why do I really feel like I'm sliding down this slide? The dream faded, and so did the fog. Sam still felt the slide and the wind, however. She opened her eyes. It took her a moment to realize that she was actually sliding down the WHOOHP-away tunnel.

"AAAIIEEE!"

Just as she was about to crash into the wall at the bottom, it fell away and Sam spilled out onto a thick cushion in Jerry's office.

"Hello Sam." Said Jerry.

A second cushion appeared on Sam's left, and Clover fell from the ceiling in a heap. Like Sam, she was in her sleeping clothes.

"Hello Clover."

"Jerry, you'd better have one darn good explanation, because I'm a hair's breadth away from ringing your limey neck!"

A third cushion appeared on Sam's right, and bleary-eyed Alex tumbled onto it, clutching a teddy bear.

"Hello Alex. It's good to see you all on such short notice."

Alex sat up and yawned. Jerry, what's going on? You never give us missions in our sleep!"

"I'm afraid this one's an exception, girls." Sam caught the tone in Jerry's voice and knew he was serious.

"Well, what's up this time?"

"Several hours ago, we don't know exactly when, a nuclear disposal facility in Russia was attacked by armed men and they stole a nuclear warhead on its way to be dismantled."

The silence in the office was deafening. The girls had dealt with and defeated all manner of psychopaths and their doomsday weapons, but nuclear terrorists were new. After a few seconds, Sam spoke up.

"Do we know where they intend to use it?"

"No, but the leader is expected to deliver his ultimatum any second" said an unfamiliar voice.

"Who was that?" asked Clover.

"Oh, so sorry, girls" Said Jerry. A young man in a jacket stepped out of a corner. "This is Jacob. We'll be working with the National Security Agency, and they've loaned us one of their best agents for this mission."

Jacob regarded the girls with a critical eye, and then turned to Jerry. "Jerry, are you sure these are the agents you were raving about a few minutes ago?"

Alex, Sam, and Clover were quite miffed, although Alex conceded that they did look rather pathetic in their sleepwear.

"What do you mean, "are you sure?" asked Clover. "You don't get much better than us in this organization!"

Jacob and Jerry ignored her. "Yes, I'm quite sure, unless they've been replaced by doubles within the last 24 hours. I assure you these are the finest agents we have."

Jacob looked at the girls again. "I hope you're right, Jerr. I really wasn't expecting such accomplished agents to be a bunch of kids. Especially not on such a critical op."

"You're not exactly an old man yourself, you know."

"Yeah, yeah."

Jerry's phone rang. He answered it and then said, "The terrorist is about to deliver his ultimatum. Please pay close attention everyone." Jerry pressed a button on his desk and the screen on the wall lit up. There was only static for a few seconds, and then it cleared away to reveal the silhouette of a man in a nondescript room. He took a deep breath, and then started talking in Russian. Sam only knew a few phrases, so the most she could catch was "greetings," and the rest was gibberish. He spoke for a couple of minutes, and then the video ended. Jacob crossed his arms and went into deep thought. Jerry called for a translated transcript of the ultimatum. Alex squeezed her teddy bear tighter. Whatever the terrorist had said, they could all tell it was serious and probably not the work of some first-time hack.

A minute later, an assistant entered the office and handed all of them translated copies of the message. It went like this:

"Greetings to the western world. As you are well aware by now, I have indeed stolen a rather powerful nuclear warhead from Russia and fully intend to use it to punish your society. I was once an officer in the Soviet military, but when the Soviet Union collapsed and sent my country into a tailspin of corruption and impotence, they decided I was no longer of any use. I have suffered for fifteen years, and will suffer to see the western world stand over my country and mock it no longer! I watched helplessly as my wife and daughter died because the price of your medicines was so high we could not afford it. You call yourselves great nations; yet have offered little more than worthless cash to aid a neighbor in need. Since I have no place in this world than as a defender of my homeland, I will use whatever means at my disposal to harm her enemies. I will crush your inflated ego under a nuclear hammer, and I will not give you the satisfaction of hunting for me, for I intend to go up with it. Goodbye, and I'll see you all at the nuclear dawn."

Jerry gave them a minute to read the transcript, and then punched a few more buttons on his panel. The screen divided into several cells, and the cells became occupied with very important-looking people, one of whom was the President. The assistant returned and offered the girls bathrobes and shoes.

The President was the first to speak. "Good evening, ladies. Nice to see you again." They were used to the President's laid back mannerisms, but now he was cold and focused as any of the others.

"Jerry, long time no see." Said a black man in a uniform in one cell.

"It's good to see you as well, MacDonald."

"Can we get to the matter at hand?" said Jacob. "We've already lost a lot of time thanks to intelligence complications."

"Yes, I suppose you're right, Jacob" said MacDonald.

"Oh, I almost forgot." Said Jerry. "Girls, this is Andrew MacDonald, head of the NSA."

"Hi!" they chimed.

"It's a pleasure to meet you, ladies. I've read all about your exploits."

"You already know the President, and we also have the Secretary of Defense online as well."

"Well, I for one and deeply disturbed by the ultimatum" said the Secretary of Defense.

"How so?" asked the President

"It's not like a regular ultimatum."

"Why is that? He's threatening a major world power."

"Hey, don't ultimatums usually come with a set of demands or something?" asked Clover.

"Yes," said MacDonald.

"But there were no demands in his message." Said Jacob.

"Exactly." Said the Secretary.

"Then he intends to use the bomb no matter what." Said Sam

"Yes, it seems we have no alternative but to stop him before he can deploy it." Said the Secretary.

"The question is, where will he use it?" asked the President. "He never specified a target."

"Then that's up to us to figure out." Answered Alex.

"But how?" was the question no one asked. There was a moment of silence before Jacob began. "We'll just have to use deductive reasoning."

"What do you have?" asked MacDonald

"Jerry, give me a world map, will you?"

Jerry displayed a map of the world on the screen.

"Well, he specified a Western nation as the target, so we can go ahead and eliminate Asia, the Middle East, and Africa." As he named them, the areas went dark. "We can also eliminate Russia, since he obviously doesn't want to harm his homeland." Russia went dark. "It would be safe to rule out the old Soviet bloc nations closest to Russia as well. Several countries in Europe that bordered Russia went dark. "The last thing I think he'd want is to risk harming his country by bombing a neighbor. Next, we can rule out South America and Central America, since you can't do any real lasting harm there." South and Central America went dark.

"But why not?" asked Alex. "There's plenty of big cities in those countries."

"Wait, didn't he say he wanted to hit the world in it's ego?" asked Sam.

"Exactly" said Jacob. "If you want to hit the world with one strike, you hit it someplace prominent. Someplace everyone knows about."

"Jacob, you do realize that this leaves only the US, a few major European nations and Australia don't you?" asked the Sec Def.

"Oh, yeah. You can probably rule out Australia as well." Australia went dark. "This leaves us with only a few possible targets. He'll probably aim for a major city, possibly a capital, so that leaves Madrid, Paris, London, Berlin, Rome, and Warsaw in Europe."

"Why just those?" asked the CIA director.

"Because everyone knows about them," answered Jerry.

"If he were aiming for a cultural center," said Sam, "why not Athens? It's practically the birthplace of Western civilization."

"I considered that, but Athens _was_ the cultural center. Now it's just a vacation resort and historic city. If I were him, I'd hit something more current, which means that Rome may also be eliminated." Italy went dark.

"I have a question!" piped Clover. "If you're with the National whatchamacalit, then why should you be so concerned with Europe's problems? I mean it only makes sense that you should be working on right here."

Jacob gave Jerry an inquisitive look. "It is true that we have plenty of agents working in Paris and London." He confessed.

"Which would mean the United States are our only real concern at the moment," Said MacDonald.

"I agree," said the President. "So, where would he hit us?"

"That's pretty obvious, isn't it?" said Alex. "Washington or New York!"

"That would be true, Alex, if he wanted to _cripple_ the US," answered Jacob. "However, he specifically stated that he wanted to hit us in the ego, not the pocketbook and not the heart."

"So where does that put the target?" asked the Sec Def.

"Well," answered Jacob, "Which state has more songs written about it than any other?"

"Well, duh, it's California!" answered Clover.

"And what specific place is more famous than any other in the state?"

"Hollywood!"

"Correct! What else is there in Los Angeles?"

"Beverly Hills!" Answered Sam.

"What else?" The girls tried to think of something important they knew about, and so did the panel. Finally, Jacob spoke up. "Try 3,694,820 people just in the metropolitan area, and 9,806,577 in the entire county. And that's just the people who are legal residents and have phone numbers."

"Dear God," mumbled the President.

"And it won't just be that county that's affected," said the Secretary. "All of Southern California would be affected as well. The mountains will help contain the damage, but the winds will still carry the fallout great distances."

After a moment, MacDonald spoke up. "Jacob, I've never doubted your judgment, and you're the best agent I've got. I'm sure with the help of those three you will find the truth and stop these terrorists. As of now, Operation Shooting Star is go. Mr. President?"

"You'll have written authorization within ten minutes."

"Thanks, chief." The President's image vanished.

"Gentlemen, I think we've talked long enough," said Jerry. "I believe it's time we saw to our individual responsibilities. We've lost too much time already."

"Yeah, see you later Jerry. Good luck girls." The Secretary vanished.

"Just a reminder, you all have an open line right to me, so if I can be of any help, don't hesitate to call." MacDonald vanished. Now it was just the five of them in the room. Jerry stood up and addressed the girls. "Well ladies, it's time we got started." He pulled up a map of the city docks. "Suspicious cargo has been passing through the warehouses along the docks lately. Your first assignment is to investigate one of the warehouses and search for any suspicious activity and report anything you find back here."

"This is a stealth mission, so absolutely no one can know we've been there. Not the police, not the dock workers, no one," said Jacob.

"Wait, you said first assignment? Report back here?" asked Sam.

"There's no telling how long this op could last." Said Jacob. "We may have weeks, we may have days, and we may have hours. The terrorists already have the jump on us, and we'll have to play catch-up."

"I hate playing catch-up," muttered Alex.

Jerry called up a list of equipment. "Your gear has all been selected by Jacob, and it's nothing he doesn't use on a regular basis."

"You'll be wearing a special sneak suit I've used on numerous occasions. We'll be using two-way earpieces for communications, and they're very sensitive, so you don't have to speak too loud. You'll also be equipped with night-vision / infrared goggles, miniature lock-pick and electronics kits, combat knives, climbing gloves, and silenced SOCOMs."

"What's a SOCOM?" asked Clover.

"A .45 caliber pistol used often by Special Forces."

"Hold up!" exclaimed Sam. "We are not taking guns on this or any mission! I don't care what the odds are!"

"Listen, Sam," Jacob snarled, "the pistol is only for a last resort. The last thing we need on this sortie is a dead body. Just think of it as insurance." He headed for the door. "Amateur hour is over, girls. We're dealing with professionals from here on."


	2. Chapter Two

Shooting Star

Chapter 2

Sam tried getting used to moving in the sneak suit. The black and metallic gray suit was a lot stiffer than the olive green jumpsuit she was used to, and the equipment was much bulkier than what Jerry usually gave them. Despite that, the equipment fit well onto the suit. Her knife hung on the back of the belt, and the handle pointed to the right for easy access. The electronics and lock pick kits were clipped at her hips, and the holster was strapped to her leg. It was actually pretty comfortable. Her baklava and goggles were off, and the gun still lay unloaded on the bench. She still hated the idea of bringing one since they'd never needed one before. Clover was still having trouble getting her vest on.

"Man, that guy may be a cutie, but how rude can you get? He treated us like total rookies!"

"No kidding!" said Alex, trying to help clover get the vest on. "Clover, your legs go through the straps."

"I knew that." Clover finally got the vest on and started closing it up. "And on top of all that, these suits are just plain ugly! And what's with the vest anyway?"

"I dunno. Jacob said the whole thing's important."

"Important enough to make me go around looking like this, I hope."

There was a knock at the door. "Five minutes, girls!" said Jacob's voice.

Sam tried out the climbing gloves. They reminded her of the sticky gloves they'd used before, but these didn't stick. They did seem to allow her to grip surfaces much better than normal, however.

"Well, I suppose if we're not supposed to be seen, then it doesn't matter what we look like," said Sam.

Clover started stretching. "Maybe, but this thing sure is stiff."

Sam decided to load the gun and holstered it. She hoped she'd never have to use it.

"You know, I think he understood what that guy was saying."

"You think so?"

"Yeah. I think he might have recognized the voice, too."

"I thought I saw that, too" said Alex. "If he knows who the guy is, why didn't he say so?"

"It was just a bad video," said Clover. "And besides, we couldn't even see what the guy looked like. I think you could mistake someone pretty easy like that."

"I guess so," said Sam. "But I can't shake the feeling something's not right."

"How so?" asked Alex.

"I dunno. I just feels like they're hiding something, but I have no idea what."

For a moment there was only the sound of Alex and Clover strapping on the rest of their gear. Sam looked at her watch. "I guess we should get going, then. You girls ready?"

"When are we not ready?" declared Clover.

Alex yawned. "At one in the morning."

Their earphones buzzed, and then Jacob came on over the line. "Testing. Can you girls hear me?"

"Loud and clear."

"Yup."

"Just fine, thanks."

"Good. Everything's ready down here. Come down to the garage and I'll give you more info on the mission on the way over." Jacob disconnected.

Alex noticed the worried look on Sam's face as they walked to the elevator. "Don't worry Sammy! It's not like we haven't done this before! It'll be just like any ol' mission!"

"Yeah, Sam!" said Clover. "We're just getting in, grabbing some stuff, and leaving. Piece of cake!"

They exited the elevator and headed for the garage, where Jacob was waiting for them next to a van. He was wearing the same suit they were, except his was cut differently to fit his larger frame.

"Good, you got your suits on without any trouble. Any questions before we roll out?"

"Yeah," said Sam. "Why are these things so stiff?"

A slight smile broke on Jacob's face. "You'll just have to get used to it. There's actually a lot more to those suits than meets the eye."

"Like what?" asked Clover.

"Well, not only does the color scheme help hide you, but the suit itself also monitors your biorhythms, tracks your location, hides your body odor, masks your heat signature, and the vest will stop any small-arms fire."

Sam wondered how such a thin vest could stop a bullet.

"Those suits contain some of the most advanced evasion technology around, but don't overestimate it. You're still just one person, and we're all very lightly armed. We can't fight with this gear. We can only hide."

"If it's all about evasion, why can't you just borrow an invisibility suit from WOOHP?" asked Alex.

"WOOHP can use their methods, but I and the rest of the NSA prefer to use currently-existing technology."

"And that means?"

"It's possible to build everything we use from off-the-shelf parts."

"So, what exactly are we looking for?" asked Clover.

"I'll fill you in on the way over. Let's go."

They piled into the back of the van, which had benches set up along the sides and a panel in the floor. Once the van started moving and was away from the WHOOHP building, Jacob reached down and raised the panel to their knees. He pressed a button, and a holographic display of a warehouse layout appeared. Sam noticed then that a pair of fuzzy dice hung from the rear-view mirror.

"This is the building we're infiltrating," Jacob said, calling their attention to the layout. "We're going in via the roof. There's a fan right here we can disconnect and stop so we can sneak in. One of us is going to have to stay there to reconnect the fan after we're in and then turn it back off when we leave. Any volunteers?"

"I'll do it." Said Alex.

"Good. Keep an eye out while you're out there for anything that could give us trouble. Your goggles have a 10x zoom, so they can double as binoculars. Above all, stay out of sight."

"Gotcha."

"The rest of us will have the real fun. Even though it is early in the morning, there's still going to be people working there. We'll have to do whatever it takes to avoid being spotted by them. It won't be easy, because the building is well-lit."

"Then how do we keep from being spotted?" asked Sam.

"I want one of you to find the fuse box and disable about half the lights in the building. But don't take out the office, because I want that to still have power."

"Why?"

"I'm going to break in and see what I can find in their computer records."

"I guess I can take care of the lights." Said Clover.

"Thanks, Clover. Sam, you're going to search the stocks. Your electronics kit has a silent Geiger counter and explosives detector." He showed her the function. "If you find anything unusual, scan the shipping card into the device." He showed her the scanner.

"How much do we need?"

"Not much. Anything radioactive enough or that registers high enough on the explosives detector will do. Everyone understand their objectives?"

They nodded. "Good. If I find what I want, we all exit via the fan and fall back to here." He pointed at a spot a block down from the warehouse. "After that, we return to WOOHP and go over our findings. Any last questions?"

"What if we get spotted?" asked Sam.

"Run. Run and hide. If you're spotted, we abort the mission immediately."

"And if we run into security?"

"You know what to do."

He caught the concerned looks on their faces and tried to calm them down. "Look, this is a simple job. All of us have snuck into places far more secure than this. You shouldn't even have to deal with security or get spotted by the workers."

Warehouse District – 2:00 am

Four shadowy figures darted across a building and vanished behind an air conditioner. A minute later, they reappeared at the edge of the rooftop facing a large warehouse. Sam slung the crossbow from her shoulder, aimed, and fired the bolt at a spot on the roof of the warehouse. The bolt trailed a rope from the rack and attached itself to the sheet metal side. Jacob secured the other end of the rope to their building and handed zipline clamps to everyone. A moment later they zipped down the rope across the street and onto the warehouse roof. After removing his clamp, Jacob gave the rope a big tug and it came free, allowing him to bundle it up. They moved cautiously across the roof to a large vent, where a wire grate stood between them and the fan. Jacob opened his lock picking kit and removed a pair of cutters. He cut a large enough hole in the grate for them to crawl through, and then stood aside while Alex turned the fan off. He set the rope and the crossbow down near the vent, and once the fan had stopped, he motioned Sam and Clover through. Luckily, there was no grate on the other side, so they entered the building easily. They let themselves down to the floor close to the back, and then Clover signaled that she was going for the fuse box. Jacob waved her on and then he and Sam went to find a place to hide until the lights went out.

It seemed like an eternity before most of the lights on the ceiling dimmed and extinguished, plunging most of the building into gloom. The high stacks of crates provided plenty of shadows for them to hide in as they stalked through the building, listening for any footsteps or forklifts. Soon, Jacob signaled that he was heading for the office, and for Sam to start searching the crates. He lowered his goggles over his eyes and crept away without a sound.

Time to get started, she thought. Sam unfolded her electronics kit, extended the probe, and began waving it around the stacks. Many of the crates were high overhead, so she often had to climb up to check one. The gloves made it easier to climb, since they increased her ability to grip an object. Every few steps, she stopped to listen for the sound of approaching workers, but so far none had come.

Sam had almost worked her way to the other side of the warehouse without finding anything, when she heard voices approaching. She quickly put the kit away and scurried up a stack of crates. She got to the top and lay down when the workers appeared.

"Crud! That's the fifth fuse this month! We really gotta get this place fixed."

"No kidding." Said the other one. "We ain't usin' that much power. What's killing the fuses?"

"No idea, but it sucks. I hate working here when the lights are out. I can't help but feel like we're not the only ones here."

"Aren't we paranoid? It's just an old fuse box, that's all. Tell the boss to get it replaced."

"Yeah, I'll do that after my shift."

The workers rounded another stack and their voices trailed off toward the back of the building. Sam eased herself down and continued her search. The meter on the Geiger counter and the explosives detector remained normal. She crept towards a group of smaller crates and continued searching. A few minutes later, she heard the workers coming back. She looked for a place to climb up, but there was none. None of the stacks were over seven feet tall. Sam found the tallest one and hid behind it. She tried to keep control of her breathing, but her heart was beating like crazy. The workers' footsteps got louder and louder until the workers were right in the area.

"Dude, what's with that piece of junk? A whole row was fried!"

"I don't know. Guess it's a lot older than I thought."

"Guess we have no choice but to replace it, then."

"Yeah. Can we still work like this?"

"I think so. Just stay in the front where it's brighter. Don't go in the back unless you have to."

They started to move away from the short stacks. Sam watched them until she felt it was safe to go. She crept across a lane towards the taller stacks, but then her foot hit one of the palates with what seemed like a deafening _thud_. She stopped dead in her tracks and heard the workers stop too.

"The heck?" They started to walk to right where she was standing. As quickly and quietly as she could move, she darted around the stack and waited for the workers to walk around. Once they were out of sight, she headed towards the front of the building, and then took a right back to the larger stacks. She was in sight of the front doors, and peeked around the corner. Several workers were standing around drinking coffee, and the office was pitch black except for the light from the computer monitors. She waited for the workers to move before heading back to the rear of the room. She stopped when she heard the first two coming her way again.

"I know I heard something, and so did you."

"It's probably just a rat, but we'd better check anyway."

Sam was trapped. If she went back, she'd be far too exposed and risk getting spotted. Her best bet was to use the shadows and try to sneak past the workers, but that was equally tricky. She had to do something, because if they rounded the corner the game was up, but the workers were already too close. Sam prepared for the worst, as the workers were about to spot her, when something made a lot of noise back the other way.

"What was that?" asked one worker.

"Not sure, let's see."

They headed back in the direction of the noise. Sam took the opportunity to creep across the row and then climbed up the first stack she got to. She got to the top and crouched as low as she could, and then saw Jacob crouching on the stack across from her. He asked if she was okay through the mike, and she nodded. It wasn't until then that he relaxed his grip on his gun.

She heard one of the workers say, "I told you it was just rats."

"Did you find anything?" he asked.

She touched her earpiece and replied "No."

"Alright then. I found what I needed. Let's go."

They climbed down and moved back to the rear of the building. They found Clover waiting beneath the fan, and they climbed back up to it.

Jacob touched his earpiece. "Alex, it's us, Turn the fan off."

"Gotcha" she replied.

The fan motor stopped, and after a few seconds Jacob reached in and stopped the fan with his hand. They climbed out and Alex turned the fan back on when they were clear. They found the access ladder and climbed down it, and then hurried down the block to where the van was waiting for them. They climbed in, and only when the van was clear of the warehouses did they breath a sigh of relief.


	3. Chapter Three

Shooting Star

Chapter 3

WOOHP Headquarters – Waiting Room – 6:30 am

Jacob lay sprawled out on the couch. Sam, Alex, and Clover rested on each other's shoulders. When they arrived back at the building after the mission, Jacob had given an agent a data stick and told the girls he was going to get some sleep before the next briefing. Jerry gave them an hour to run back to their homes and grab some clothes, and then return immediately to the building and await their next assignment. Since then, they had all been sleeping heavily.

The sun rose above the mountains and the light streamed through the curtains into the room. The girls awoke first and stretched. They were glad to be out of the sneak suits and back in some normal clothes. The suits made them feel dirty somehow, and they felt disconnected from WOOHP while wearing them, like they were in another world. Sam started rummaging her bag for some soap, when someone knocked on the door.

"Excuse me," said a voice on the other side, "but Jerry says you're all needed in his office in ten minutes."

Clover yawned. "Alright, we'll….be there."

Jacob was still sound asleep on the couch. "Shouldn't we wake him up?"

"I guess so, but I have a feeling that's a bad idea," said Alex.

"So what?" said Clover. "If we have to be denied our beauty rest to chase after some dude who's name we don't even know yet, I don't see why he should get any."

Clover walked over to the couch and started shaking Jacob. "Hey, secret agent man! Get up!" Jacob responded by clenching his eyes shut. "Oh, no you don't! You got us up in the middle of the night, so it's only fair that we get you up at the crack of dawn, pal." Jacob responded by turning his back toward Clover and tried to sink deeper into the couch. "Hey! We've got ten minutes to be in Jerry's office. You are not skipping out on us!" She kicked him. Jacob sat up with a start, and stared at Clover through half-open eyes. He looked at all of them as if he was ready to kill, and then stood up and stomped his way to the bathroom, slamming the door behind him.

"I guess he's not much of a morning person, huh?" said Alex.

"Yeah, let's stay out of his way until he's in a better mood." Sam suggested.

They heard the sound of running water for a couple of minutes, and then Jacob emerged, drying his hair with a towel. He hung the towel on his shoulders, and then smiled at the girls. "Good morning, ladies! Good job this morning to all of you."

"Man, talk about mood swings!" Alex whispered to Sam.

"Sorry if I snapped at you. I'm always a bit of a grouch when someone wakes me up unexpectedly."

"Understatement, much?" said Sam.

"Heh, I guess." Jacob hung the towel up. "Better get ready. I have a feeling it's gonna be another long day."

Jerry's office – 6:45 am

"Good morning, everyone. I hope you're rested, because we've got a lot to cover."

"Well, what have we learned from the shipping data we found?" asked Jacob.

"A good deal, but not enough, I'm afraid. We were able to trace the data you found back through several depots to the original point in Siberia. Most of the transaction data is useless, as the money trail is very long and every lead we traced ended in a dead end."

Alex scratched her head. "Could you put that in English, Jerr?"

"It means that we couldn't trace the money or sender to any single person or organization. Even the package originates in an ordinary warehouse."

"Can we be certain this is the right one?" asked Jacob. "I've been on plenty of wild goose chases before, and in this case we can't afford one."

"The package was very prominently marked with fragility warnings in several languages, and the warehouse itself was the final destination. One of the biggest clues was that this was a single item, when the warehouse you investigated deals almost exclusively with bulk items."

"Bribes?"

"Possibly."

"Where's the package now?" asked Sam.

"Unfortunately, it had been removed from the warehouse you visited a mere 12 hours before you arrived, so chances are it's still somewhere in the city, if it's as big as we think."

"How big is that?"

"According to the shipping information, the package was very large, but it seems most of the bulk was insulation. Whoever sent it doesn't want the contents damaged."

"I'll bet part it was radiation shielding to fool detectors," said Jacob.

"Probably."

"Do we know who claimed the package? Or who sent it? That's where we should start."

"Thankfully, that we do know. The person who claimed the package was a Mr. Joseph Karemat. When our investigators checked out his name, they came up empty. We've been trying the Russian government, but they've been strangely uncooperative."

"Great," muttered Jacob. "Did the probe into missing Soviet officers ever turn up anything?"

"Yes, but we came up with far too many who are unaccounted for."

"Officially, I assume?"

"Yes."

Jacob smiled again. It wasn't the friendly "hello" smile from before, but more like one that knows what's coming.

"I'm guessing we'll have to sneak into someplace to find out?" asked Clover.

"Yes. The Russian embassy, to be exact."

"WHAT?" they exclaimed in unison.

"The embassy keeps an eye on all Russian nationals living in the United States. It's the perfect place to look first." He continued before they could object further. "You'll be using some WOOHP gadgets you're familiar with and a couple Jacob has suggested. These earrings can hack into any electronic lock and disable it. You'll also be carrying these sticky sonic belt buckles. Throw them onto a window and it will weaken or break even bulletproof glass. Give the face on this wristwatch a quarter turn and double-tap it to activate the alarm on all four units. Use it if you're discovered and make a hasty exit. Finally, you'll all be carrying these high-capacity memory disks which can link to your Compowders." He held up a remote control. Jacob saw what was happening and sat up.

"Jerry don't you dare –"

"Au revoir!" The floor gave way and all four of them disappeared with a yelp.

Jacob was a seething mass of fury for most of the plane ride. The girls heard him mutter a number of threats against Jerry and lots of curses, too. They avoided talking to him for fear that he'd bring the plane down at a moment's notice. By the time they were approaching Washington, DC, he had finally calmed down and called them together to discuss the plan.

"Well, how do we get inside?" asked Sam.

"It won't be easy." Said Jacob. "The place was built during the Cold War, and as a result it's half fortress. I've decided that sneaking in like last time is a bad idea."

"So we're going undercover?" said Alex.

"Yeah, and we've got a good cover as well. It turns out that due to budget cuts, the embassy can't keep its own custodial staff, so they're hiring a local service in town. That's how we're getting in."

"Eww, we're disguising ourselves as janitors? Sigh, the things I do in the name of international peace!"

"This isn't exactly a peaceful action. For all intents and purposes, the embassy _is_ part of Russia."  
"Which means we're essentially invading Russia, right?" said Sam.

"Bingo! So we'll have to be extra sure we don't blow our cover."

"Why do we have to do this? Can't we just find out why they won't tell us what we want?"

Jacob snickered. "Welcome to the world of espionage, Sam. When someone won't give you something you want, you take it. By the way, if we do get caught, you guys are in much worse trouble, because I don't officially exist."

"What? How is that possible?" They exclaimed.

"The US government cannot confirm my existence. As far as identity goes, I'm just a name and a star in a roster."

Russian Embassy – 4:00 pm

The cleaner's van pulled to a stop at the security gate in front of the embassy. Jacob rolled down the window and showed his ID to the guard, who waved them through.

"Well, we're in." He told the girls once they were past the gate. "Now the fun part begins." He pulled into the parking lot near the building, and they all climbed out of the van and started grabbing cleaning equipment out of the back. Jacob and Clover pushed the mops and buckets in front of them, while Sam carried the brooms and Alex pushed the cart with the other supplies. The guard at the service door stopped them and checked all their Ids before letting them in. So far the fake Ids and cleaning clothes they "borrowed" from the custodial service were working flawlessly. Despite their age, the girls still looked like regular janitors, and they were wearing cheap makeup and scarves to complete the effect.

When they were out of earshot of the guard, Jacob said, "Alright, just like we planned. I'll check the basement and first floor, while you three work the other floors. If your alarm goes off, it's time to scram. And don't forget that the data cards connect to your Compowders."

"Right."

Clover and Jacob went to the supply closet to fill their buckets while Sam and Alex headed for the elevator.

"Man, the last thing I need are dishpan hands!" said Clover.

"Then wear the gloves. Don't worry. I have a feeling we won't need to be here too long."

"Well that's a relief. This is probably one of the tackiest things I've ever worn. Although that cowgirl getup I once had is definitely #1." She winced at the memory of that costume.

Jacob rolled his eyes and decided to start mopping. Most of the first floor was occupied by the reception room, dining rooms, and sitting rooms, which were all luxuriously carpeted. "At least this'll make the first floor quick" he thought. He found a tiled hallway and started mopping, keeping an eye out for a computer room.

Alex got off at the third floor and pushed the cart in front of her. She found that offices and cubicles composed the third floor, and most of them were occupied. The few that weren't were too exposed to the rest of the office to risk trying to hack. Nonetheless, she decided to start cleaning something. She put on some gloves and drew a bottle of Windex and some paper towels from the cart and started cleaning the windows of the offices along the walls. Every so often one of the workers would glance up and smile at her, and she'd return it with the cutest smile she could manage. She eventually worked her way around the office and started changing the trashcans. Every now and then, a young man would start flirting with her, and she tried her best to maintain a fine line between flirting back and blowing him off. She hoped the others would have better luck, because she knew there was no way she could hack into the system from here.

Clover entered the second floor with a broom and vacuum cleaner. Conference rooms and small offices made up the second floor, but there were few computers. She began by vacuuming the conference rooms, and then started sweeping the hallways and offices. A few of the young men found her presence very distracting, a fact which she wasn't sure she should be thankful for or feel creepy about. Regardless of how she felt, their bosses weren't happy about their slackened pace, and urged Clover to hurry up. When one man made a particularly strong pass at her, she responded with "buzz off cradle-robber." The look on his face told her he didn't really understand, but he did catch the tone in her voice. She ended up having to construct and elaborate series of lies to keep them off of her so she could continue her real work.

Sam got off at the fourth floor, where the Ambassador's office was located. She carried a push broom and a few dust rags, and decided to start with the Ambassador's office, since she knew he was gone for the day. The office was right down the hallway from the elevator, and she put on a calm face and set off. Figuring that she'd need permission, she stopped at the secretary's desk.

"Excuse me, I'm kinda new, is the office locked? Because – "

"You need to clean it?" interrupted the middle-aged woman. "Yes, go on ahead. He's gone for the day." She pressed a button and the heavy oak doors unlocked.

"Thank you!" Sam entered the office and shut the door. She began sweeping the finely polished floor, and when she got to the desk she found there was no computer on it. She removed a dust rag and started wiping down the cherry desktop, searching for a secret compartment or panel or something, but found nothing.

Jacob traded his mop for a broom and headed down to the basement. He carefully read each and every sign as he worked his way down the hallway. The basement was much cooler than the rest of the building, so he knew he was close to a computer room. The hallway made a large semicircle and then cut across at the back of the building. Jacob was halfway across this straight hallway when he saw "mainframe" on a sign in Russian. A keycard / combination lock secured the door, so he unfolded the lock picking kit disguised as a wallet. He removed a card that was tethered to the unit and inserted it into the lock. A series of characters flashed across the LCD display for a few seconds before the combination appeared. He entered the combination and the door unlocked. Checking to make sure no one was coming, he slipped inside and closed the door.

Compared to the rest of the building, this room was freezing cold. A single monitor and keyboard was set up near the massive storage banks with a slot for data cards. Jacob turned it on and inserted his data card into the slot. The card wasn't just empty storage. It also contained a hacking program that could log him onto the network and then search for the information they needed. After a few seconds, the login screen changed to a command prompt. The program then went to work and started filling in commands faster than Jacob could keep up. After a couple of minutes, it stopped and the screen filled with info on a man and his picture made Jacob do a double-take.

"It can't be." He double-checked the description and history on the man. "So, you've finally come." He saved the data onto the card, removed it, and turned the monitor off. He paused at the door to listen for footsteps, and hearing none, left the room and picked up sweeping where he left off. As he was rounding the corner, a guard saw him.

"Hey!" he said with a heavy accent. "What are you doing down here?"

Jacob put on his best innocent newbie face. "Someone said they had a spill down here, and told me to come clean it up."

The man looked at him closely, decided he was telling the truth, and let him go. "All right then, but get out of here, okay?"

"Okay, thanks!" Jacob hurried to the elevator and rode up to the second floor. They only needed to keep this up for another hour before – Jacob's thought ended when he rounded a corner and found a gun pointed at his temple.

"Well, well, aren't you a sight for sore eyes," said the man with the gun.

Jacob looked at the man and recognized him as a counterspy from a mission he'd been on months ago. "Gary! You're the last person I expected to find here. Did they demote you after I humiliated you last time?"

"Ha, ha. Aren't we the funny man?"

"I'm terrible at telling jokes."

"True, your punch lines are flat and your execution is terrible."

Jacob gave the watch face a quarter turn.

"I suppose that cute blonde number is with you? She's not very good at cleaning."

"I guess not. Those rich girls are never too good at that kind of thing." He double-tapped the watch face and the alarm went off.

"What's that alarm mean?"

"It means it's time to scram." He whipped the broom handle around and slapped the gun out of Gary's hand, causing it to fire at the ceiling. He spun the other end around and swung at his head, and Gary blocked it and countered with a left hook. Jacob intercepted it with the broom, and counter-attacked, and Gary responded by blocking the broom and went for a leg sweep. Jacob blocked that, jabbed at Gary, and they both stepped away from each other in fighting stances.

"What's the matter, Gary?" Jacob swung the broom around like a staff and held it ready with his right arm. "Did I not kick your butt hard enough last time?"

"That was a technicality. This time we don't have a collapsing bridge to worry about."

"Sure, just you and the rest of the guards here, that's all."

"My kind of odds."

Jacob blocked a low and high kick, parried a punch, and then caught Gary under one arm and threw him against the wall. Gary pinned the handle under his arm and the two of them exchanged a few blows from the ends of the broom before Gary snapped the handle in two with his free hand. Jacob had the end with the straws and pointed it at Gary like an Epee. Just then a pair of guards ran around the corner and shouted at Jacob. Gary glanced back at the guards, and Jacob took the moment to hook Gary's leg with the broom and yank his feet out from under him. Jacob was sprinting down the hall with guards in pursuit before Gary even hit the floor.

Clover and Sam were equally occupied with evading the guards. No sooner had their alarms gone off than an order came over the PA system to arrest all of them. At least that's what they inferred when the guards started coming at them with riot clubs.

"I guess the jig is up!" said Sam as they fled the guards.

"Gee, you think so?" said Clover, also fleeing the guards.

"Where's Alex?"

"I think she was outside when the alarm went off. I hope she's okay!"

A pair of guards stood in the hallway, ready to grab them. Sam took advantage of the wet floor and slid between their legs while Clover vaulted over their shoulders and kicked off of them, causing them to fall and trip up the pursuing guards. They emerged into the foyer, with its elegant staircase arching up to the second floor and elaborate decorations accenting the walls. Jacob appeared at the railing above. "Sam, catch!" He threw his data disk to her Frisbee-style and yelped as a bunch of angry voices came from his left. "Split up! Meet up at the east gate!" he yelled as he sprinted across the room with more guards in hot pursuit.

"Quick, let's try going out through the kitchen!" said Sam.

"Might as well. We're only invading a friendly nation, aren't we?" They ran for the kitchen.

Jacob ran down a long corridor with a window at the end. He glanced back at the guards, and noticed some were starting to reach for their guns. Figuring the window to be made of bulletproof glass, he removed his belt buckle and hurled it at the window. It stuck to the glass, beeped three times, and then the window was instantly covered in a network of fine cracks. Jacob put his head down, crossed his arms in front of him, and leaped through the second floor window. He landed on the lawn below, rolled, and then got up and ran without missing a beat. He noticed that a garbage truck was just leaving the compound, and headed for it.

Gary exited the front door and quickly scanned the east lawn. He couldn't see Jacob anywhere, nor could he find the three girls who were with him. He hated his short assignment as security chief for the embassy now more than ever. All he needed was two more days and he could go back to the field. At least he got to see his old thorn in the side. Guards were running everywhere, and the only thing leaving the compound was the garbage truck, and he noticed a very familiar figure hanging on to the back. He picked up his radio. "Close the east gate now!" The truck slowed to a halt as the gate slid closed, and Jacob started climbing up the back of the truck rather like a panicked squirrel.

Jacob was on top of the truck when he noticed a lot of guards running out of the embassy. Then he noticed that the guards were carrying AK-47s and did not look happy to see him.

"Awww, CRAP!"

He ran as fast as he could across the truck just as a hail of gunfire erupted behind him and bullets zipped past him on every side and ricocheted off the truck in a flurry of sparks and shrapnel. He lunged off the truck, somersaulted over the gate, and landed back on American soil. Without pausing, he ran from the embassy, and the girls emerged from bushes and joined him.

Gary watched the four of them retreat into the city and laughed at Jacob's luck. His radio came back on.

"Sir, should we issue a warrant for their arrest? We have photos of all four."

Gary considered the plan, and then asked, "What did they steal?"

"We have records of an unscheduled login to the mainframe, and some data was copied off of it."

"What kind of data?"

"Information on Kierieg."

Gary thought about it for a moment, and then spoke into the radio. "Let them go."

"But sir – "

"Let them go. It was just a matter of time before they got that from us in the end. Besides, I doubt any of them officially exist anyway."

"…..Yes sir. Understood."

Gary put the radio away, and then decided to go in and have tea.


	4. Chapter Four

Chapter 4

The girls chatted lightly about the success of the mission on the plane ride back to Los Angeles. Alex told them about how she had gone out to the van for more Windex when the alarm went off, and thus escaped first. They traded the different stories they'd concocted to keep the staff in the dark, and Sam and Alex laughed hard at Clover's increasingly elaborate lies.

"Well, first I told them that I wasn't really interested in anyone there, which was a lie because there was this one really cute guy who kept flirting with me."

"He didn't happen to be a little shorter than me with blonde hair did he?" asked Jacob from the back of the cabin.

"Yeah, how did you know?"

"That was Gary. He was a counterspy working against me a few months ago. I ended up nearly killing us both, and we've sort of had a major rivalry since then.

"You two have a run-in at the embassy?"

"Yeah, but I gave him the slip."

"Anyway, where was I? Oh, right. So like, this Gary person keeps coming back. He's really nice, complimenting my cleaning –"

"He said you were doing a terrible job."

"Why that no-good little…anyway, I started with me being so poor I have to hold that and another job to pay my expenses, and ended up saying I was a teenage bride and my husband and myself could barely afford to live in the city but I loved him anyway so I wasn't interested in any other men."

"I guess I was lucky then," said Alex through her laughter. "The guys on the third floor were really nice, but weren't creeps like that guy. Too bad I'll probably get arrested if I ever try and visit them! How about you, Sammie? Any guys giving you the eye?"

"Well, there weren't many people at all on the fourth floor."

"Aww, poor Sammie. No one to pay any attention to her!"

"Shut up." Sam crossed her arms and glared at the others as they laughed.

The plane cruised over brilliant white clouds and endless plains stretching into blue infinity. Jacob relaxed in the back, content to let his mind wander and stare at the clouds. After a few minutes, Sam turned around and asked, "Hey, what was in the data you found?"

"Details on the terrorist we're after."

"How much did you find?"  
"More than enough to bring him in." Sam noticed a shadow briefly pass over his face.

"That's a relief," said Alex. "The sooner LA's out of danger the better."

"It won't be easy. From what little I read of the file, this guy is good. Real good."

"Surely the four of us can handle it," said Clover. "WOOHP's best super-spies and the NSA's best agent? He doesn't stand a chance!"

"I hope you're right, Clover. This guy is extremely dangerous. I wouldn't be surprised if you find this guy's in a class all by himself."

The flight continued in silence for a while after that. Jacob had just decided to take a nap when Sam spoke up.

"So, how long have you been an agent?"

"Well, I've been working for the government since I was fourteen, and I've been with the NSA for four years. I keep forgetting that I started when I was your age."

"Why did you start so early?" Clover asked. "Jerry never recruits anyone under sixteen."

"It's a long, sad story Clover, and I'm not at liberty to tell you most of it."

"What's "not at liberty" mean?"  
"It's classified information, and you don't have the clearance to know it."

"Oh. So, what kind of things do you do?"

"Most of that's classified as well."

"Then what can you tell us?" asked Sam.

"I will tell you that I've broken more international treaties and agreements than I can keep track of. I've taken apart drug rings, busted smuggling operations, stolen sensitive information from most of the major world powers, fought clandestine wars, man, what haven't I done?"

"Geez, you're a threat to world peace," remarked Clover.

"Heh, yeah, that's why they keep me on such a short leash." The girls wondered what exactly he meant, and then Jacob turned to Sam. "You put that disk up, right?"

"Yeah, it's in the strong box." The strong box was a reinforced titanium cabinet in the back of the plane. Should the plane go down, it would be one of the few things to survive.

"Good. Let's concentrate on lighter things for the time being, shall we?"

Clover yawned. "Or we could try getting some sleep that we didn't get last night."  
Jacob yawned. "Yeah, we could do that."

Alex yawned. "That sounds like a great idea. I'm tired."

Sam yawned. "That sounds like the best plan I've heard all day."

They all slept the rest of the way to Los Angeles.

Metro Train Station – The Next Day – 9:40 am

"Are you sure this is the best plan?"

"MacDonald, this is the best shot we've had so far at nabbing this guy."  
"I don't like it. He uses one of his known aliases in a series of easily traced transactions, and then he takes the train? It sounds like a trap."

"It's the first and best chance we've had this whole case. If it is a trap, we'll have to risk it. We just can't pass up an opportunity like this. We may not get another one."

"I understand how you feel, but please be extremely careful. You know this guy better than I do, and I have a plenty good idea what he's capable of."

"We'll be careful." Jacob turned the communicator off. It sat in the center console like a cell phone in a charger. Alex and Sam sat in the back, while Jacob drove and Clover sat in the passenger seat. They were parked near the station, waiting for the terrorist.

Jacob pressed a button on the unit and the LCD display on the dashboard lit up. Sam and Alex leaned in to look at it from the back seat. "This is the guy we're after. His name's Stephen Kiereig, age forty-seven. He made the rank of Lieutenant Colonel before the new Russian government axed him after the Soviet Union collapsed. He was known as a brilliant tactician and excels in combat with firearms of all types. Also proficient in a little-known martial art form the KGB invented, making him dangerous at any range. Apparently he was in charge of security at a nuclear weapons facility towards the end of his career, which would explain why he was able to invade it and steal the warhead."

"He knew the place well, so it made the job easy, huh?" said Clover.

"Exactly. Combine that with the fact that the facility had changed little in 15 years and you get a recipe for disaster."

Their earphones crackled as one of the other agents came on. "The suspect is moving down Metro Avenue on foot."  
Jacob touched his earpiece. "Roger that. Keep us informed."

A minute passed and the mikes came on again. "Suspect is approaching the station right on schedule."

They had parked in the back to keep out of sight. Jacob removed his gun and said, "Check your weapons. We're moving in." They all made sure their guns were ready to fire and holstered them underneath their jackets. They got out as another report came in. "Suspect has entered the station."

They left the car and entered the station. They walked quickly and calmly to the west wing and headed down to the platforms. Jacob showed the guard his badge and the guard turned off the metal detector to let them through. Another report came on. "Suspect has entered the platforms. He's heading for the train as expected."

The suspect's train was at the other end of the platforms. They hurried across and were almost there when the agent said, "Suspect has boarded train."

"Copy that. Over and out." The station was full of people, and the four of them pushed their way through the crowds as fast as they could. Alex checked her watch.

"Two minutes!"

Jacob swore and redoubled his pace. The girls picked up the pace and knifed their way through the crowds. Clover wondered where so many people came from so suddenly. Alex though it might be an omen. Sam tried to follow Jacob. Jacob never took his eyes off the train.

They reached the train just as the last boarding call went out. Jacob touched his earpiece. "Which car did he enter?"

The other agent came on. "He went into the center car. He's probably moved toward one end of the train."

"Roger that." Jacob removed his earpiece. "Take off your communicators. We don't want to cause a panic."

They jumped onto the train just as the doors closed. Jacob showed his badge to the conductor. "We believe a terrorist is on board this train."

"What do you need us to do?" asked the elderly conductor.

"If you see anything suspicious, tell us immediately. But don't let the passengers know, whatever you do."

"Right." The conductor left the car and the train began to move.

"Which way did he go?" asked Alex.

"I don't know. He's still on the train, and there are only two directions. You three head that way," he indicated the forward-moving end, "and I'll go this way." He indicated the other direction. "Above all, don't underestimate this guy." He started to exit the car when Sam stopped him.

"Jacob, do you know this guy?"

mission. We proceed as planned." With that he left.

"Well, let's go." Said Sam.

They turned to the left and started moving up the train. The passengers paid them little attention as they walked up the aisles. They looked over each and every passenger, but none matched the portrait they saw in the car. When they reached the end of the first car, they asked the conductor if he saw anything, but he reported that all was normal. They continued up the second car, which was packed with passengers. It took them a long time to check each and every one, but they found no one resembling the suspect. They moved to the end of the car, passed through it without any luck, and then found him walking down the aisle in the fourth car.

He was a tall man, and well built under his trench coat and suit. His dark hair was speckled with flecks of gray, and he walked calmly and deliberately, like he was waiting for something to happen. The girls didn't need to see his face to know this was their man. They drew their guns simultaneously and pointed them at Stephen.

"Stephen Keireig, you are under arrest for suspected terrorist activity." Said Sam "Put your hands behind your head and come with us!"

Stephen stopped and turned around enough to look over his shoulder. His steel-blue eyes froze the spies to the spot, and they felt that this was the last place on earth they wanted to be.

"So, you're the underlings they sent to arrest me?" He stared at them for a moment. "I'd heard they used children these days, but I didn't think the rumors were true." His voice made him sound even more threatening, like that of a man who sees no distinction between life and death.

"Yeah, we're here to bring you in.," said Clover. "We're not about to let you get away with your sick little scheme."

"Let me? You can't stop me. None of you can."

"Huh?" said Alex.

"Between the four of you, only he has the skill to stop me. This much I know."

"You're not making any sense." Said Sam. "There's three of us and one of you. You're kind of outnumbered."

"It's not a question of numbers, my dear." He turned to face them. "The simple fact is you are children and he is a man. This fight is between men."

That remark put Clover over the edge. "All right, buddy! We're here to take you in, now give it up!"

"All right then." He put one foot back. "Come on, try and arrest me."

Clover accepted the challenge and launched herself over the seats, stepped across the headrests and lunged at Stephen with her right foot. Stephen stepped back to avoid the kick, and Clover landed and followed up with a series of punches and kicks, and Stephen blocked every single one with ease. The narrow aisle only permitted one person to fight him at a time, so Alex and Sam stayed back, not sure what to do since Clover was in their line of fire. Clover threw another punch, which Stephen dodged and grabbed in an iron grip with his left hand. He hit Clover in the stomach with his other hand; backhanded her across the face, and his third punch launched her down the aisle. Her head clipped a seat as she went down, and she knelt on the floor clutching her head in pain.

"Is that the best you've got? What's wrong with you two?" he asked Sam and Alex. "You've had your guns on me this whole time and you haven't fired a shot. As long as you hesitate to fire you'll never be as good as he is."

"Who are you talking about?" asked Sam.

"Isn't it obvious? The man with no life of his own? The man who's every form of identity is tied to the government? The man with the killer instinct whom you've been working with?"

"Jacob? What do you mean "killer instinct?"

He grinned. "Hmph, I guess he hasn't shown it to you yet. It's the one thing that will always separate him from you three."

His gun was out so fast that Sam didn't notice until the bullet has already passed her head. "Take cover!" She and Alex dove behind the seats as Stephen fired three more shots as he retreated down the car. The passengers ducked and started screaming, and they ran towards the back once Stephen was gone. Sam and Alex got up to chase him, but the flood of passengers hindered their progress. Once they were gone, Alex bent down to check Clover.

"Clover, are you alright?"

She was still holding her head and was starting to stand up. Alex helped her up, but Clover was still unsteady, so Sam told her to sit down and wait for them. Clover sat down in a seat while Alex and Sam ran for the next car.

Stephen was waiting for them and fired just as the door opened. Sam and Clover ducked aside and then rolled into the car. Stephen was heading down the aisle amid the confused passengers, and turned and fired three more shots when the girls tried to rush him. One of the passengers snapped and ran from his seat toward the back of the car. The other passengers suddenly thought this was a good idea, and they started panicking and rushing for the back. The girls tried to force their way through them, but there were too many people in such a small space. Stephen stood at the front of the car, smiling at the panic he'd caused. He hadn't shot anyone yet, even though he wanted to. He decided he would receive enough punishment in hell after nuking Los Angeles.

The seats were empty except for a girl frozen to her seat with fear. Alex and Sam stayed behind their cover in the back. They saw the girl and noticed she looked about their age. They beckoned her to come to the back of the car once Stephen turned around and started for the door. The girl swallowed, climbed from her seat, and started running to the girls. Stephen spun around and fired two more shots. The first one hit a seat, but the second found its mark. The girl's shoulder exploded in a spray of red, and she fell. The girls saw Stephen reload his gun and leave the car.

They ran to the girl, who was clutching her wounded shoulder and crying. Sam made a decision. "Alex, stay here and take care of her!"

"What? How?"  
"Bandage her shoulder and stop the bleeding!"

"Sam, you're the biologist! You stay!"

Sam didn't hear the last part. Her mind was so clouded with anger she couldn't hear much at all. She held her gun with both hands and ran after Stephen. Alex feared for Sam. She'd never seen such a look on her friend's face. Something wasn't right with her. She turned her attention to the wounded girl. Blood was everywhere, and her shoulder was still bleeding. The girl looked at Alex with eyes full of fear and pain.

"It's okay, we're here to help." She said in a soothing tone. Alex found a first aid kit beneath one of the seats and started bandaging the wound.

Sam emerged into the empty car with her gun ready and found Stephen pointing his gun at her from the other end. She dove behind the seats as he started firing, and she raised the gun over the seat and fired a few rounds at Stephen's direction. When she stopped, she heard him speak again.

"Good job, you've finally fired your gun at me. But you're going to have to face me if you want to hit me."

Sam was breathing hard and she was furious as ever. "Shut up, you murderous lunatic!"

"Ooh, anger! How unprofessional! You'll never beat me if you can't control your emotions in battle, child."

Sam rolled out, fired down the aisle, and then dove forward behind a row of seats. Stephen responded with another volley of bullets, and then Sam heard a metallic _chink_ that made her uneasy. She took a deep breath, stepped into the aisle with her gun ready, and froze. Stephen held a grenade in one hand, his fingers holding down the lever, which held the firing cap in place. The pin dangled from the middle finger of his left hand.

"Too late, child. You shoot me and I drop the grenade. Don't shoot and I might drop it anyway. Either way, you lost your chance to stop me."

Sam was speechless. He wouldn't drop it, would he? There's no way off this train, and we're already way outside the city.

"This is a battle between men. Children shouldn't get involved." He dropped the grenade at his feet and kicked it down the aisle. Sam turned and sprinted back to the door and hit the floor once she was in the other car. She heard the grenade explode and felt the train shudder from the blast. She felt the train buckle beneath her and her screams became indistinguishable from the screeching metal grinding against itself and twisting out of shape. Everything after that was a blur.

Sam!

Sam!

Sam!

Sam!

Sam!

Sam!

Wake up!

up!

up!

up!

up!

up!

We're not finished yet!

Yet!

Yet!

Yet!

Yet!

Yet!

Sam? Sam!

Sam!

Sam!

Sam!

Sam!

Sam!

Sam felt something cold on her face. Then she noticed it was wet. Her senses slowly coagulated back into their original states. The swirls and spots she saw slowed and congealed into an image of Jacob kneeling next to her with a bottle of water. She noticed that the air reeked of oil and smoke and dust. She felt the hard, uncomfortable surface beneath her. Jacob poured more water on her face, and she sputtered and coughed and sat up.

"Whew, thank God you're alright!"

Her vision improved quickly, and she noticed that the car was on its side. The lights were out and dust and debris were everywhere. She noticed that Jacob and her were covered in dust and scratches, plus her jacket was torn in several places. She tried to speak, but no words came from her throat.

"Here, drink some water." Jacob handed her the bottle, but her hands were shaking so violently Jacob had to hold the bottle while she drank. After a few mouthfuls, she found she could talk again.

"Wh-what happened?"  
"The train derailed."

"Wh-where were y-you?"

"I was halfway back up the train when it derailed. I just got here."

"What about the others?" Her voice had calmed down and her hands were shaking less.

"Alex is over there with that girl." He indicated the other end of the car where the girl was helping Alex sit up. The girl's shoulder was bandaged and her arm was in a makeshift sling, but the bandages were already turning red. Alex got up and they noticed she had a bad cut over one eye.

Jacob got up and walked over to them. He checked Alex's cut first and then the girl's arm. "It's still bleeding. We'll have to redo the bandages." Clover stepped through the sideways door. The side of her face was bruised and she had minor abrasions like the rest of them, but she was fine otherwise. "Clover, go take care of Alex's cut and make sure Sam's okay. I'll take care of this one." The girl winced as he started unwinding the bandages.

"Did I not do it right?" Alex asked, still dazed from the crash.

"No, you did a good job. The bandages weren't on tight enough, that's all. Hand me that first aid kit." Alex handed him the kit and he removed an alcohol swab, a patch, and cut a length of gauze and handed them to Clover. "Here, patch up Alex and go check on Sam." He removed another swab and cleaned the wound on the girl's shoulder before wrapping the bandages back on. Clover tended to Alex.

"You okay?" She too sounded distant.

"Yeah, I've been hurt worse playing soccer."

Sam felt the strength returning to her legs, and eased herself up and walked over to the others, using the seats as supports. "Where's Stephen?"

Jacob sighed. "Got away." He sounded calm, but Sam caught the furious undertones in his answer.

"I…I'm sorry."

He looked up at her. "Don't be. You guys were just unlucky and got in way over your heads. I should be the one apologizing for splitting us up." Jacob reclined against the seats and heaved a great sigh.

After a period of nervous silence, the girl spoke up. "Who are you people?"

Clover was about to answer, but Jacob cut her off. "No one. We don't exist, and we'd appreciate it if you forget we were even here." With that he got up and climbed out of the train.

Clover watched him leave, gave the girl a frustrated look, and then climbed out after him. Sam and Alex helped the girl up and they climbed out of the train after Jacob and Clover. They climbed out through the hole the grenade had blasted open and surveyed the damage. Most of the cars were lying on their sides at various angles, and some had clustered up in the wreck. People were standing on and beside the cars, helping others climb out. Jacob sat at the edge of the car, and Clover was giving him a tongue-lashing.

"She's just a teenager, though! And she's not even a spy like the rest of us! She's been shot and been in a train wreck! How on earth can you be so mean to her?"

"Don't you see this is bigger than that?" snapped Jacob. "Think about it! Stephen is target number one. He knows the location of the bomb, who's working for him, where his funds came from, and when he's going to set the bomb off! Our little SNAFU may have just handed everyone in LA the death sentence!" The last sentence hit like a hammer, and everyone fell into a deep silence. Clover stood back and thought about his words. Jacob stared off across the plain. The four spies felt like the world was on their shoulders now. All the girls wanted to do now was go back home. They didn't want to be part of this scheme anymore.

At length Jacob spoke up. "I've already sent for a lift. They'll be here in a couple of minutes." He looked back in the direction of the city, where a small dot was moving and getting closer.

"What about all these people?" asked Alex.

"They'll have to wait for EMS to get here. Nobody's hurt too bad as far as I know, besides her." He glanced at the girl. "What's your name, anyway?"

"Lana." Replied the girl.

"Lana, we're about to leave. I want you to go wait for the EMS with the other passengers. Remember, we were never here."

"Okay." Replied Lana.

Jacob slid off the car to the ground and turned around with his arms out. "Jump down Lana. I'll catch you!"

Lana looked cautiously down at Jacob, and then looked at the girls, who assured Lana he'd catch her. Lana stepped off the train, and winced when her shoulder was jarred when Jacob caught her. He set her down and motioned the girls to follow him. He then checked Lana's bandages one more time before sending her down the line of wrecked cars. The girls lightly hopped down from the train and they all walked out into the field and stopped two hundred feet from the wreck. The outline of the helicopter was quite visible now and getting closer.

Jacob turned to the girls. "I've decided to give you all a choice. You can either stay with this mission until the end, or you can step out now. I'm giving you a chance to walk away from this whole thing, and I'm going to hold you to whatever decision you make. If you decide to walk away, you will no longer be part of this mission, and any further involvement will be considered interfering with the operation and will be dealt with as such. If you decide to stay on, you must see the operation to completion or until you die, whichever comes first. I'll give you until 0700 tomorrow to make your decision."

The grass rippled as the helicopter descended. It carried the WOOHP markings, but seemed no less inviting. They boarded the helicopter and it lifted off into the cloudy sky to carry the tired spies back to the city.


	5. Chapter Five

Chapter 5

WOOHP Headquarters – Guest Room – 7:00 pm

The girls had a tough choice to make, to say the least. Jacob had given them a free ticket out of this mess, and all they had to do was accept it. Yet if they did, they could no longer help with the mission, and Los Angeles and every man, woman, and child in it would still be in danger regardless of their involvement. They sat on the beds and tried to sort out their feelings and make a decision.

"This is crazy," said Clover. "Did you see what he did? I was on the floor before I even knew what happened! How could an old man like that be so fast? And then he wrecks the train all by himself! Do we even stand a chance against this guy?" She was on the verge of tears.

"You didn't even see what he did to that girl, Lana." Said Sam. "He shot her without a moment's hesitation. I didn't see a hint of surprise or remorse in his face. What a monster."

"Do you guys really think we should take up Jacob's offer?" asked Alex. This doesn't feel like one of our old assignments. There's just something different about this one."

"Yeah, I agree. There's something not right here."

Too many thoughts passed through their heads to sort them into words. They were still sore from the wreck, and they were still shaken by Stephen's savage display of skill.

"MacDonald was right." Sighed Sam "It was a trap. He was just seeing if we were on to him."

"Now that I think of it, it was pretty obvious." Said Clover "So why did we go in anyway?"

"Like Jacob said, it was the best chance we've had to nail him."

"When the stakes are this high, I guess you take whatever chances you get." Said Alex

They all agreed. The girls sank into their own thoughts for a moment before Clover turned to Alex. "How's your head?"

Alex smiled and said, "I've had worse!" The tiny bandages stood out like beacons against her dark skin. "The doctor said there'd be minimal scarring, so I'm not worried about it."

Sam decided to return to the question at hand. "So the question here is, do we walk away from this and hope someone else can take care of it, or stay on and fight a bad guy in a totally different class?"

Clover sighed and fell back on the bed. "I just want to go home! I don't want to deal with these uber-dangerous characters anymore! I just want to curl up in my own bed and not worry about the state of the world until Jerry needs us again!" She closed her eyes. "I'm tired of this crazy game those weirdos play."

Alex agreed. "Me, too. I think this whole thing may be too much even for us. What kind of guy takes out a random train just to prove a point? It didn't have anything to do with his plan. He just goes and wrecks it because he can! It doesn't make sense!"

Sam also wanted nothing more than to leave all of it behind. But there were so many questions they'd have to leave unanswered. Who was this Stephen guy? What exactly connected him and Jacob? What did he mean by "killer instinct" and how did it involve Jacob? Why is he trying to destroy the city? Revenge? He did say he lost his family because of the high cost of medicine. Personal gain? No, he planned to go with the bomb. Just for kicks? That can't be it. She felt that there was a whole level of important information Jacob and his cohorts weren't telling them. If so, why are they so secretive? Stephen's last words and stone-cold voice in the train still echoed in her mind: "This is a battle between men. Children should not be involved." He seemed to know Jacob so well. What is the connection here?

Alex asked Sam a question that had been burning all day. "Sammy, what happened to you back there?"

"Huh? What do you mean?"

"After that girl got hurt, I saw you…change somehow."  
"What do you mean? How?"

"There was something in your face. Something I've never seen before. You were completely…completely…"  
"Completely what?"

"Angry."

Sam recalled that she was acting more reckless than usual after Lana was shot, but she didn't think it meant anything.

"Sam, I've never seen you like that. It was scary."

"Was it really that bad?"

"Yeah. You looked like you were ready to do something horrible."

Sam thought about what she felt between when Lana was hurt and Stephen dropped the grenade. The details came back into view. She saw Lana get hit and fall down. Then she remembered her vision fading. But it wasn't everything that faded. She still saw Stephen standing there as cold and confident as ever. She saw the gun in her hand, and the only thing she could think about was doing to him what he did to Lana. Everything else; the train, Lana, Alex, they all faded from sight and became secondary objects like the lines on a road. She was aware of their presence, but at the same time ignoring them.

"I just…hated him. With every fiber of my being, I hated him for what he did. I hated his confident smirk. I hated his face. I hated his voice. I couldn't think about anything else. It's so strange."

Alex leaned forward and stared straight into her friend's eyes. "Don't ever do that again, Sam! Understand? Never!" She was about to cry.

Clover sat up. "Just what is going on here? We never fight like this on missions! What have we gotten into?" She looked from one face to the other and saw the same blank stares, and collapsed back on the bed.

Sam leaned back against the headboard. She was tired. They were all tired. This plot seemed to be getting bigger than three teenagers could deal with. She felt guilty over what she did in front of Alex. It felt so unnatural to lose it like that on a mission. Wasn't she usually the smart one who looked before she leapt? She knew Stephen could have killed them easily, so why didn't he? She started to drift off to sleep. When she opened her eyes, Alex and Clover were curled up asleep on the beds. Her watch read 11:00. She wanted to drift back into the peace of sleep, but her mind was still conflicted. Stay and possibly die fighting this maniac, or walk away and leave it to others and do nothing with the knowledge of what's happening?

I need to think, she said to herself. She eased out of the bed, crept to the door, and left the room. The hallways were empty except for the occasional WOOHP staff member who waved or nodded hello as they went to work. She wandered up and down the halls, trying to find and answer to Jacob's proposal. But the answer was obvious, yet she was afraid of it. She entered the elevator and pressed a floor at random. The doors closed and the elevator hummed for a couple of minutes as it changed floors. The elevator let Sam out onto a floor that didn't look too much different from the one their room was on. She wandered down the hall, not paying attention to anything until she heard voices coming from one of the rooms. She followed the voices to an empty cafeteria, but she decided to stay out of sight rather than disturb the people. Leaning next to the door, she recognized Jacob's voice and another one that sounded like it was coming from a small speaker.

"I felt it was an acceptable risk given the gravity of the situation, sir."

"That's your opinion! We had to come up with a doozy of an explanation for this little incident to keep the press in the dark! And you know as well as I do how hard it is to keep the press in the dark about anything."

"We've done a good job so far haven't we?"

"Yes, so far. But what about tomorrow? Suppose he decides that instead of a private broadcast to a few world leaders he's going to hijack a radio signal and broadcast there?"

"He won't do that."

"And what makes you so sure?"

"There's no reason. Everyone he wanted to know knows, and that's it. Besides, he wants to catch the populace off-guard. He knows he'll accomplish his real aims better that way."

"Real aims? What are you talking about?"

"You know as well as I do, sir. Besides, as long as congress is still in the dark, I don't think we have to worry. They're the ones who always leak stuff like this."

"Sadly, that's the truth."

Sam finally recognized the second voice as that of the Secretary of Defense.

"Jacob, you've already screwed up once. We can't afford another SNAFU like that. Next time, it'll be the death knell for Southern California. And I especially want you to be very considerate with those girls."

"Why is that? You've read their dossier. They're very accomplished agents."

"I just don't like the idea of trusting something this important to people who can't even vote yet."

"They've met Stephen and got a plenty good chance to gauge his strength. They'll be more prepared next time."

"I hope so. I don't want to have to step in on this personally. I'm needed here in Washington, and I don't want to make up some excuse to leave my office at a moment's notice."

"We'll make sure that's not necessary, sir." Sam heard him turn something off and decided to step into the room. Jacob put what appeared to be a cell phone on the table he sat at and saw Sam. "Oh, hi Sam. Trouble sleeping?"

"Yeah."

"I don't blame you. After my first major SNAFU I didn't sleep for a week."  
"Really? What happened?"  
"'Fraid that's classified."

"Oh." Sam stood at the entrance to the cafeteria. Jacob sat at a table and sipped from a white mug. The cafeteria was empty except for a single employee in the coffee store currently reading a book.

"Wanna sit down?"

"Yeah, thanks." Sam pulled a chair out and sat down opposite Jacob. "What are you doing up so late?"

"I slept earlier after debriefing. During a crisis like this I don't sleep much at night. Important things tend to happen at night during times like these."

She noticed his cell phone was bent at an angle with a long screen extending from the top to halfway past the bend. "What's that?"

"You might say it's a digital cell phone, but it's got a few more features, like a speaker phone option and this." He turned the unit over and pressed a button on the back. A small panel rose up and the phone projected an image of a tree on the tabletop. "Useful for looking at images when a printer isn't around."

"Cool."

Jacob flipped through a few more images of buildings, people, random-looking locations, and even one of her school before turning it off. He put the phone away and decided to get to the chase. "What's bothering you, besides the obvious?"

Sam thought for a moment and answered, "I know what I have to do, but I'm afraid to do it." She crossed her arms and laid her head on the table.

"Is that all?"

"Is that all!?"

"Fear is totally natural. Everyone says I'm fearless, but the truth is I get into some situations that scare the living daylights out of me all the time."

"Really?"

"Yeah, but I know that's not what's really bothering you."

Sam looked up. "How did you tell?"  
"Part of my job is learning to read people. Your face and body language tell me there's something really bothering you right now, and you don't want to bring it up."

For a few minutes, the room was completely silent. She could tell Jacob was waiting for her to make the next move, since he simply sat there and calmly sipped his coffee. She stood up and walked over to the window. The city gleamed like thousands of jewels against a pitch-black setting. It seemed so peaceful and secure from up here, yet someone down there wanted to destroy it all. For now, she wasn't really concerned with him. She leaned her head against the cool glass and said.

"Who are you people?"

"What's that supposed to mean?"  
"You. MacDonald. The Secretary. Who exactly are you people? What drives you on this crazy mission?"

"Unfortunately, most of the details of my life are confidential. But –"

"Just how much of your life is a secret? What's with all the secrecy around here? What are you people hiding?"

Jacob's voice became grave. "There are some things that are best left in the dark, Sam. That's just how it is. You'll have to learn to live with it."

She turned around and leaned back against the window. "Then what can you tell me? Why are we so concerned about not letting on what we're doing?"

Jacob stood up and walked over to the window. He leaned against the sill and stared at the city a moment to collect his thoughts. "Sam, do you see all those lights out there?"  
"Yeah."

"Looks peaceful, doesn't it?"  
"Mm-hmm."  
"Now, imagine if all three million plus people down there suddenly woke up one day and discovered that someone wants to blow up their city and has the means to do so."

"They'd want to leave, wouldn't they?" She could see where this was going.  
"And who can blame them? A nuclear threat's no laughing matter. The problem is, four million people trying to leave the city all at once is going to create havoc. Everyone starts panicking in their mad dash to leave, and outgoing traffic is gridlocked for miles."

"They'll be sitting ducks."  
"Yeah. Stephen sees all the chaos, and in the middle of it all, detonates the bomb." He let the image sink in. "This is why we can't let anyone outside of those involved know what's really going on. The less they know, the better."

She thought about that for a moment. "So what are you going to do?"

"I'm going to see this thing through to the end no matter what you girls do. I'm obligated, make that duty-bound, to protect this country by whatever means are at my disposal." He stretched his back and returned to the table. "Whatever you three decide to do is your business and yours alone."

Sam joined him at the table and turned a chair around. As she sat down, she confessed, "I just don't know what to do."

Jacob set his coffee down and sighed. "Well, what are your choices?"

Sam thought for a moment. "I can go home right now and pretend nothing's happening when I know that's a lie, or I can stay here and make a difference against a bad guy the likes of which I've never met before."

"Seems like an easy choice to me. You only have two options. You could flip a coin if you wanted."

For a moment that seemed like a good idea before Sam banished such a loony idea from her mind. Then she thought of something. "Why do you keep fighting, besides being an NSA agent?"

Jacob held his mug in both hands and thought. "There's lots of reasons. I fully understand the political, environmental, and sociological implications of a nuclear attack, even if it is a terrorist activity, so I can't stand the idea of allowing one."

"What else?"

"Despite what I do for a living, I can't stand the idea of someone murdering defenseless civilians for any reason. I hate nuclear weapons. They're so wasteful. The only thing they do is kill huge numbers of people along with whatever else you wanted to destroy. If we can cripple an enemy with the kind of precision we have now, then what's the use of a nuclear weapon?"

Sam's mind started to drift. She rested her head on the back of the chair and stared out the window at the jewel-lined roads. She followed them to all the places she loved. Her home, her school, the mall, the museums, WOOHP and her friend's homes. She thought of all the people associated with each one. She saw Jerry and Alex and Clover, her favorite teachers, David, even Mandy all in their places. Then she imagined them all gone. Each and every place was a radiation-soaked ruin, and every person a mangled corpse lying in the sun. And they were all gone because she chose to not make a difference. She couldn't tolerate the thought of everyone and everything she loved being laid to waste because of one disgruntled old man. Even Mandy deserved a better fate. She made up her mind.

Sam raised her head from the back of the chair and stood up. "I know what to do!"

"And what is that?" Jacob asked dryly.

"I have to tell Alex and Clover! I'll be right back!" She bolted from the cafeteria and down the hall. Jacob's phone rang and he answered it.

"Jacob…Yes sir, she did…No, I don't think we have to worry about them…You have?…Good, we'll be ready by then…Yes, sir." He ended the call and pocketed the phone. He drained the last of his coffee and returned to his room.

Sam was in such a hurry she ran into the door before she remembered to insert her card key to unlock it. She threw open the door and found Clover and Alex sitting on their beds, apparently she'd walked in on their conversation.

All three of them blurted out at once, "I know what we have to do!"

The next few minutes were pure confusion as they vied to be the first to say it, but Clover eventually won the screaming contest.

"WE'VE DECIDED TO STAY WITH THE MISSION!"

That finally shut everyone up and gave them a chance to catch their breath. Finally Sam spoke up. "You have?"

Alex turned around on the bed. "Yeah, Clover and I are going to stick with it no matter what!"

"Yeah, it is awful that this psycho wants to blow up our home, but it'd be worse if we just stood by and let him do it."

Sam sat down next to Alex. "Funny, that's exactly what I just thought."

"Where'd you go, anyway?" asked Alex.

"I needed some time to think and walk around a bit."

"Oh, okay!"

"What made you decide to do it?"  
"I suddenly realized how selfish I was, thinking about what I want while the whole city is counting on us to see another day. Kinda puts things in perspective, doesn't it?"

Clover gently rubbed the side of her face. "Not to mention that Stephen guy still has to pay for hitting me like that. No one ever hits me like that! I'll make sure he regrets doing that for the rest of his life! Say, you didn't see Jacob out there, did you?"

Sam lied. "No." She decided it was better that they not think Jacob influenced her decision.

"Then it's settled!" Declared Alex. "We're going to do whatever we can to bring this guy in come hell or highwater!"

"Alex!" exclaimed the others.

"What? It's just an expression." They all shared a good laugh.

They felt the matter could wait until morning and turned in for the night. Despite the gravity of the situation facing them, their hearts were peaceful and their minds clear. They slept better than they had for days.

MacDonald signed the last form authorizing the next phase of the operation. He clipped the forms together and handed placed them in the out box and leaned back in his chair. Soon an assistant appeared and took up the forms. He glanced at the cover sheet and his eyes went wide.

"Another one of these? Already?"

"Yes, I'm afraid so, Roger." MacDonald was trying to sort out all the possible complications in his mind, and there were a lot of them, every one hinging on just a few major ones. His phone rang and the light next to "Sec Def" lit up. He answered the phone and said, "MacDonald speaking."

"So, you're going ahead with the next phase?"  
"Yes."  
"Have the WOOHP girls made their decision?"

"Not officially, but Jacob's positive they're staying on."

"You sound worried. Is there a problem?"

"Possibly. And it involves Jacob."

The Secretary was silent. "Please explain."

"You know what the parameters of this mission are, right?"  
"Yes, you told me just a few hours ago."  
"That's where the problem lies or may lie."

"I don't follow, Jeff."

"You've never seen Jacob in battle. He's an absolute demon. I keep wondering if he can truly distinguish between friend and foe in a fight."

"That's not good, Jeff. We need WOOHP's cooperation on this. I don't think they'll be happy if our man kills their best in a firefight. Is this why he usually works alone?"

"Yes. He makes little distinction between his enemies and those who get in his way. I fear if the girls slow him down, he will lose any regard for their safety."

"Jeff, I'm not liking what I'm hearing."

"The truth isn't always pretty, sir. Jacob is an amazing fighter. We haven't seen anyone with his level of talent in over thirty years. The problem is, he's so good at it, he's likely to stop thinking about anything except his enemies and his objectives, and that's what makes him dangerous."

"Should we tell the girls about the secondary objectives?"

"No. It's best that they not try to interfere with Jacob's objectives."

The Secretary sighed. "Jeff, I hope you know what you're doing. And I hope those girls are capable of much better than what happened on the train."

"I and everyone else on this end of things are certain they are."

"Be careful." The Secretary hung up.

MacDonald leaned back and clasped his hands together. It always disturbed him that someone so young was capable of so much. But he pushed that thought to a corner of his mind. He needed Jacob. The United States needed Jacob. Both needed WOOHP and its vast resources. They needed the talents of those three teenagers. MacDonald wondered how he could be so calm with so much riding on his actions. Just a knack for it, he thought. He hadn't been to church in years, but he still said a prayer for their safety, and then left the office.


	6. Chapter Six

(Author's Note - Hey, look! It's the chapter that almost killed yours truly! Dear Lord this one was hard to write. Oh, and I've got five or six more to go! WOOOO! rides into the sunset)

Chapter Six

As soon as the sun peeked above the clouds, the girls got up and told Jacob they were staying with the mission.

"Glad to hear it! Take your time with breakfast this morning. We've got an assignment for later tonight. Briefing is at 1000 hours."

"One thousand hours?" asked a perplexed Alex.

"That's ten in the morning."

"Oh yeah, I knew that!"

The girls were feeling like their old selves again. For now they didn't concern themselves with the vicious Stephen or the danger their home was in. For once they felt like normal teenagers instead of world-class spies. Even with Jacob and dozens of WOOHP staff around them eating breakfast in the cafeteria, they didn't feel the weight of the operation. Their cheery disposition lifted everyone else's spirits, and they saw a few more smiles on the staff's faces. Even if it was for just a little while, Alex was her old clumsy yet cheerful self, Clover was the beautiful drama queen, and Sam was the intelligent moderate again.

It was still mostly overcast outside, but the sun still shone through in places, casting brilliant shafts of light down to the city. The sunlight cast a warm glow into the cafeteria, and everyone was feeling so refreshed that when someone went to close the blinds, the entire cafeteria yelled at him to leave them open.

The girls talked and laughed about boys, school, shopping and what they wanted to do this summer. Jacob got into a heated argument with a couple of other WOOHP staff at his table over religion and politics which nearly ended in a fistfight when they realized how silly they were acting and laughed about it.

Eventually, the staff began filtering out of the cafeteria and returned to their jobs or went home for the day. The clouds thickened and choked off the sunlight, becoming a gray canopy over the city again. Eventually the cafeteria was almost empty. The girls' conversation continued more quietly, and Jacob soon joined them.

He pulled up a chair. "Did you all sleep well?"

"Yeah, great!" they answered.

"Good, you won't get much tonight. From what I've heard it's a late night mission."

"Just like the last one?" asked Clover.

"As far as it being an infiltration mission, yes. But I can tell this one's going to be different."

Sam sipped at her juice. "How's that?"

"I'm not positive on anything, so don't treat this as fact, but I've heard Stephen's hired a mean bunch of mercenaries to help him."

"Is that so?"

"Like I said, I'm not positive on much of anything yet."

Clover thought for a moment. "Mercenaries, huh? We've dealt with them before. I'm sure it's nothing we can't handle."

"Glad to hear it. A confident spy is more useful than a nervous one." Jacob checked his watch and stood up. "Well, I've got some things I need to take care of. I'm not sure how much freedom Jerry's giving us today, but enjoy the downtime. See you later."

"Bye!" they waved as he left.

After he was gone, they all started talking in hushed voices.

"You know, he's pretty cute!"

"He's really nice once you get to know him!"

"Did you hear that argument? He knows his stuff!"

"I wonder if he has a girlfriend?"

"What kind of sports does he like?"

"I wonder who his favorite writer is?"

They each had something they were starting to admire about Jacob. Their memories of his rude behavior at the outset of the operation and his sudden moodiness at the train wreck seemed like distant echoes in their minds. But always Stephen's words plagued Sam's mind. Killer Instinct. The man with no life. And just what is their connection?

Alex noticed Sam's blank expression."Sam?".

"Hmm? Oh, sorry. I was just thinking."

"About what?"

"The mission. Stephen. Jacob."

"What about them?" asked Clover.

"I keep thinking there's some major thread here we don't know about."

"I say we don't worry about it. The sooner we nail this guy the sooner we can get back to being normal WOOHP spies."  
"Yeah, no kidding." Said Alex. "I can't help it, but I just don't feel quite right when we're working with Jacob."

"I think it's those sneak suits of his." Clover said matter-of-factly. "They're stiff as a board and so don't look good."

"Well, we're in it for the long haul now!" said Sam. "Guess we'll just have to get used to them until this thing is over with!" She smiled to make light of it.

"Heh, yeah, whatever! Let's just not repeat that train accident, shall we?"

"Sounds like a plan to me!" chimed Alex.

Sam checked her watch. 8:30. She stood up and said, "I guess we should start getting ready."

"Yeah, I guess so." Said Alex. They got up and started back to their room. "I wonder what they've got in store for us tonight?"

Jerry's Office – 10:00 am

"Good morning, girls, gentlemen."

"'Morning, Jerr!" said the girls.

MacDonald's image was on the screen. "Good morning, Jerry."

Jacob said nothing.

"What's up tonight, Jerry?" asked Sam.

"We've located the weapons processing facility the terrorists used to process the bomb."

"Why would they need that?" asked Clover.

"Though it may seem odd, missile-born and ground-based nuclear weapons are almost entirely different. In order to detonate a warhead on the ground, you need to re-engineer the material. Thus, you need a facility of some sort to begin with."

"And where would that facility be?" asked Jacob.

"We've found a low-rent hotel outside the city which, oddly enough, has no power going to it, and almost no traffic or phone lines. We believe that the hotel is a façade hiding the facility."

MacDonald took up the presentation as an image of the building appeared. "Recon has discovered that the hotel sits atop a multi-level basement. It's possible that the hotel was already there, and our suspect made some modifications." Jerry highlighted a large area beneath the hotel. "Unfortunately, we don't know the layout or extent of the basements since recon wasn't able to get inside."

"Your mission," continued Jerry, "Is to get inside the facility and record any evidence of nuclear materials processing."

"What do we look for?" asked Sam.

"These." Images of a variety of large machines appeared, as well as heavy-duty storage containers. "These machines are used to shape the materials into the proper configurations for use in the bomb. You should also look for containers like these, which are used to handle the material. Also keep an eye out for things like clean rooms and radiation equipment." Jerry gave them a minute to memorize the pictures before continuing. "Should you happen to locate the bomb itself, call myself or MacDonald immediately. We'll handle it from there."

MacDonald spoke up. "There's something else you should know. Stephen's hired a team of mercenaries for security. They're calling themselves WOLF."

Jacob started at the name. "WOLF? How is that possible? I thought we'd dismantled them?"

"Under new management." Said Jerry.

"I see."

MacDonald continued. "We can't be sure if this is the same WOLF you're familiar with, Jacob, but treat them as if they were."

"Heavily armed and expertly trained, I assume?"

"Yes."

Jacob smirked. "Are you suggesting we re-activate WOLFHOUND, MacDonald?"

"I don't think that will be necessary."  
"Aww."

"Excuse me," said Clover, "But what is WOLF and what is WOLFHOUND?"

"Why don't you tell them, Jacob?" said MacDonald.

"WOLF was a huge mercenary network that spanned the globe. They caused a whole lot of trouble working with rebel militias or anyone else with deep enough pockets. WOLFHOUND was something MacDonald cooked up years ago with the former President. It was an international venture dedicated to hunting down WOLF groups and breaking up their network. It was one of my earliest projects when I started with the NSA."

"And thanks to his efforts we were able to complete the operation years earlier than we expected."

"Don't flatter me. I only did what I could."

"So they're back?" asked Clover.

"Possibly. This could be the work of a WOLF officer that got away, or some rookie trying to make a name for himself."

"At any rate," continued MacDonald, "since we're so short on reliable information, there's no telling what will happen once you're inside, so be ready for anything."

Alex shifted in her seat. "How do we get in?"  
Jerry pointed to a spot on the layout. "A facility like that needs an extensive ventilation system for safety reasons. That will be your best bet. Now, on to your gadgets." A table rose up from the floor with a variety of devices on it. "You'll be using the same equipment from your last stealth mission as well as the suits." The girls stifled a groan. "Also, you'll be carrying these twenty-four exposure camera watches, which also include cutting lasers, and these seismic-inducer bungee belts. Simply attach them to an obstructing wall, press the button, and they'll emit low-level shockwaves, which will weaken the wall enough for you to knock it down with the lightest touch. Also, we've modified your Compowders for hacking into security systems so you can keep an eye on the enemy." Jerry pressed a button on his remote and the table descended into the floor. "Now, since we just have to wait until nightfall, why don't you all go out and have a little fun this afternoon? I feel you've earned a short break before you dive back into it. Cheerio!"

The floor fell away and the four spies vanished with a yelp and much cursing from Jacob.

Alex stretched her back. "It was nice of Jerry to give us the afternoon off."

"Yeah, no kidding." Said Clover. "I was about to go crazy in this building.

Sam tied her hair back. "So where should we go? The mall? The boardwalk?"

"As long as it's not here, I'll even go to a museum."

"That sounds like a great idea!" Sam grabbed her arm and started pulling her towards the elevator. "There's a great exhibit at the natural history museum I've been dying to see!"

"Oh, no. I am not going to waste my afternoon staring at a bunch of rocks!"

"We could go skating!" suggested Alex. "We've got to do something fun today! We've been cooped up at WOOHP for the past three days!"

"I'd settle for just going home and relaxing for a few hours. Being a spy is fun and all, but give me some time off for crying out loud!"

As they approached the garage, they ran into Jacob, who was carrying a helmet in one hand and wearing a jacket.

"Hey, girls. Enjoy the afternoon." He started off toward the garage.

"Where are you going?" asked Alex.

"I've decided to ride my bike around for a few hours. I haven't been on a good ride for a while. Have fun at wherever you're going!"

"Bye!" said Alex and Clover. Sam suddenly realized that she needed to corner Jacob and ask him the questions that had been bothering her. If he got away now, she couldn't be sure when she'd get another opportunity. She glanced at her friends, and then at Jacob. She kicked herself for what she was about to do, and caught up to Jacob.

"Hey, can I come along?"

Alex and Clover stared at her in disbelief.

Jacob thought about it for a moment. "Sure, why not? Let me get my spare helmet." He returned to the elevator. Alex and Clover grabbed Sam and faced her.

"What on earth are you doing? You can't hit on guys on our one afternoon off!"

"Yeah, if you're interested in him, why didn't you tell us?"

"I thought you wanted to go with us? What gives?"

Sam calmed them down and then told them her plan. "Listen, these people are hiding some important things from us. I think Jacob knows what they're hiding, and this would be a perfect opportunity to corner him and find out what he's hiding."

Alex cautioned her. "Alright, but be careful. Don't let on what you're doing."

"Get his phone number for me if you can." Said Clover.

Sam and Alex threw her sarcastic looks and muttered their disbelief.

"Alright then, we'll see you tonight, Sam!"

"Tell us what you found out, okay?" Clover and Sam got into a car and drove out of the garage. A couple of minutes later, Jacob returned with a scratched-up helmet. "Here you go," he said as he tossed Sam the helmet. She followed him to the other side of the garage, where they found a motorcycle sitting in one of the parking lots. Jacob opened a pouch on the back and removed a small box of tools. He checked the tire pressure, chain, and oil and then put the tools away.

Sam decided to begin with some small talk. "What kind of bike is it?"

"Suzuki Bandit. I like it because it's not too expensive, and it does everything well."

"That's cool. Um, do you ride it often?"

"When I can. Which isn't terribly often, however."

He put on his helmet and a pair of gloves, and started the engine.

"Well, let's go."

Sam put her helmet on and climbed on the behind him. He looked back and said, "Hold on tight, I don't drive easy!" With that he flipped his visor down. He put the kickstand up and pulled out of the garage. They waved to the security guard and started working their way through the city.

"Where are we going?" Sam asked.

"We'll head to the outskirts of the city. I can really cut loose out there. It's too crowded around this part of town." They wound their way through the downtown streets and drove onto the highway. Jacob shifted into gear and headed for the edge of town. The wind tore at them and the speed of bike made Sam feel like it was about to throw them any second. However, Jacob easily guided the bike around traffic, accelerating into turns and following the road almost carelessly. As they passed a freight truck, Sam noticed how much closer traffic and everything else seemed on the bike. She looked down and saw the road passing under the bike at blinding speeds just a few inches from her feet. After riding on the highway for several miles, the city thinned out and Jacob got off the highway and onto a smaller road that ran along the mountains overlooking the city. Sam tightened her grip around Jacob's waist as he practically threw the bike around sharp turns and flew down hills.

"Are you trying to get us killed? Why are you driving so fast?"

Jacob glanced back at her. She couldn't see his face behind the helmet, but was sure he was smiling. "Like I said, I can really cut loose out here. I love the way this thing feels on the road. It's like it becomes an extension of myself when I'm driving like this."

She heard the engine whine as he sped around another curve and felt the suspension shift with the mass of the bike and riders. "Why do you push it so hard? Isn't that bad for the bike?"

"Sam, if I can't push something to the limits of what it was made to do, then I have no use for it!" He opened the throttle and zoomed down a straightaway.

The scenery was a much-needed change of pace for Sam. The city stretched to seeming infinity down below, and the road curved and twisted along the mountains. It took them back away from the city, and trees converged around them. Every so often she could see another multimillion-dollar house through the trees, separated from the rest of the world by iron gates and long driveways. Jacob randomly chose turns here and there, and soon the area leveled out and became less mountainous. Sam realized where they were.

"Hey! My house isn't far from here!"

"Really? You live in this area?"

"Yeah!"

"Geez, your parents must be some kinda wealthy to live out here!"

"I guess so. We don't have the biggest mansion in Beverly Hills."

"Mansion!?" Jacob almost lost control of the bike. "This is why I hate mixing with wealthy people."

"Why's that?"

"They never fail to make me feel inferior to them!"

"What?"

"I can't exactly afford massive houses or go off on a luxury vacation at the drop of a hat. Not on my salary, anyway!"

"How much do you make?"

"Enough to get by, and not much more!"

Sam told herself to remember that. "So how do you get by, traveling all over the world?"

"The government pays for most of my needs, and then I pick up anything they didn't cover."

"Like what?"

"Extra clothes, food, anything not completely necessary but is nice to have."

They rode in silence for a few minutes, Sam enjoying the scenery. She'd been here many times before, but it felt different on a bike, with nothing standing between herself and the road.

Jacob downshifted and made a left turn. "So, your parents give you an allowance, or do you have a job?"

"An allowance. My mom doesn't want me working and interfering with school."

"So being a world-class spy isn't a job to you?"

"Heh, yeah it sort of is!"

"How the heck do you keep it a secret from her? You're gone for days sometimes."

"It's not easy, but I've kept the lid on so far."

"Good. I don't think your mom would enjoy the idea that her daughter risks her life on a regular basis!"

Sam laughed. "I don't think so either!" Sam decided to try interrogating him again. She knew she'd have to be careful. He's very observant. If I'm too forward with my questions, he'll see right through them and clam up again. Gotta try, though. Start small; work your way up slowly. "So, what do you do in your free time?"

"I like to read a lot when I can get my hands on something."

"What do you mean?"

"When I'm out in the field, it's hard to come across anything decent to read. Thus I tend to go on marathon sessions when I'm not on duty."

Okay, so he's well read. "What kind of stuff do you like?"

"The classics, mostly. Though I tend to favor more recent authors. Even so, it's hard to find time to read when you spend so much time memorizing maps and keeping track of headlines. How about you?"

"I guess I'm more of a math and science person. I think I just like learning in general."

"Really? That's cool. The world will always have a need for people like you."

"What do you mean?"

"Time doesn't stand still, Sam. Eventually I'll outgrow my usefulness and be assigned to some administrative position or retired completely, I don't know which."

"Why not? Can't you guess?"

"People like me live in the here and now. We leave the future to our commanders."

That's interesting, thought Sam. But not very useful. Gotta probe deeper. Start with his family. "Do you have any family around here?"

"No, back east, in North Carolina."

"Is that where your parents live?"

"Foster parents, yes. My real parents died in a car accident when I was little."

"I'm sorry."

"Don't be. It's way in the past now. No sense worrying about something that's already happened, right?"

"Yeah, you're right!" I've got a foothold, time to try again. "How long have you been working for the NSA?"

"I started training when I was sixteen, and by seventeen I was a full-fledged agent. So that's a total of four years almost to the day."

"How did you get involved with WOLFHOUND?"

"It had been going for several years before I arrived. After testing my mettle on a few missions, I learned about WOLFHOUND and wanted to get involved."

"Why?"  
"Maybe I just wanted to prove myself, or maybe it was something else entirely. All I knew was that I wanted it to be my project. It took some convincing, but they eventually let me in on it. The rest is history."

"And what history is that?"

"I did whatever I could for WOLFHOUND, and we hunted down and broke up WOLF."

They left the expensive houses and headed for a shopping district. The shops sloped with the hills and the roads meandered with no real plan; a sign of hasty planning. When they paused at a stoplight, Sam stretched and put her feet on the ground. "Aren't you worried about talking about WOLFHOUND out in the open like this?"

"Why bother? I can barely hear you inside this helmet as it is. Add the wind in when we're moving and it would be hard for anyone to hear us."

The light changed and they continued down the mountains back towards the city.

Sam kept up the interrogation. "How many missions have you been on?"

"Lots. Not as many as you, but mine tend to take a lot longer."

"How much longer?"  
"I had a particularly complex operation once that took almost six months to complete."

"Wow, where was that?"

"I'm afraid only the President and a few others are authorized to know that!"

Sam was afraid she'd pushed too far, but didn't feel him bottle up, so she assumed she was safe. They rode on in silence for a few miles, and then Sam realized they were heading back to the city. "Are we going back?"

"Yeah, I've ridden enough for this afternoon. Why don't you call your friends? I'll drop you off wherever they are." He pulled over and stopped the bike. Sam removed her helmet and fished her Compowder out of her purse. She called Clover and her image appeared on the screen after a moment.

"Sam! Where are you?"

"I'm with Jacob. Where are you guys? He said he'll drop me off."  
"We're at the boardwalk. We're about to get some snow cones." Then she lowered her voice and leaned closer to the screen. "Did you get his number for me?"

"Clover!"

"Alright, alright! Sheesh!"

Alex bumped Clover aside. "We're going to the Snow Bank for some Snow Cones! See you there Sammie!"

"Alright, hang on." She turned to Jacob. "How long would it take to get to the boardwalk?"

Jacob gazed off toward the city and gauged the distance. "I'd say about half an hour from here."

Sam turned back to the Compowder. "I'll be there in about half an hour."

"Okay, see you then!"

"Gimme my Compowder back!" said Clover from off-screen. Clover's hand grabbed Alex's face and there was a flash of yellow before the screen went blank. Sam closed the Compowder and stuffed it back in her purse. "Well, let's go!"

"Alright, hang on!" She barely had her helmet back on when he took off like a rocket back to the city.

Okay Sam, she thought, you've got thirty minutes to find out what you need. Better get started. "How long have you known MacDonald?"

"Since I started. He was around way before me. Since before the NSA was created."

"He's been around a long time!"

"MacDonald's an old man, Sam."

"Did he let you on WOLFHOUND?"

"Yeah. He says he saw potential in me and started me off with a small part in the operation and I worked my way up from there."

"Are you some kind of super-soldier or something?"

Jacob laughed. "Nah. I just do whatever I can to the best of my abilities, and always push myself to do better."

Sam was trying to think of a way to ask him about Stephen, but couldn't think of a question that would give away her intentions. So she decided to ask him right out. "What do you know about Stephen?"  
"I know as much as anyone, Sam. He's a former Soviet officer with a major grudge against the United States. He's stolen a nuclear weapon and plans to use it."

"You said you had some history with him. What exactly did you mean?"

"It's not important, Sam. All that matters is that we track him down and bring him to justice."

You're lying through your teeth, Jacob. I know you're hiding something important and you can't or won't tell us.

They cruised down the mountains and back into the city. After such an exhilarating ride, Jacob taking it easy through town seemed a little dull.

"Why are we going so slow?"

"Just taking it easy. Don't wanna wear you or myself out before tonight."

It took a few passes, but Jacob finally found the Snow Bank. Alex and Clover were waiting for them outside. Sam dismounted and removed her helmet.

"What do I do with this?"

"Just hang it off the bike." He showed Sam a small strap on the back of the seat, which she tied to helmet to the bike with. "Alright, see you all later! Have fun!" He took off as they waved goodbye. The girls turned back and went into the Snow Bank. Alex and Clover began asking Sam what she learned from Jacob.

"Not in line! Let's go outside first!"

The bought their snow cones and headed back outside. They found a covered table away from most of the people there, sat down, and then started talking in lowered voices.

Alex spoke first. "Well, what did you find out?"

"Not much. I've mostly confirmed that he's hiding something from us."

"Anything else?" asked Clover. "Did you find out anything about him?"

"Why's that important?"

"Because you would say it might be!"

"Oh, right." She took a bite from her snow cone. "Well, he doesn't seem to have much of a life outside of his work. Apparently he stays really busy."

"How busy is that?"

"He said one of his operations took six months to complete."

Alex choked on her ice. "Six months? How can a mission take that long?"

Clover looked up from her cup. "Was that when we was working on WOLFHOUND?"

"I don't think so. He was pretty frank with that. He said only a few people had clearance to know about the one he mentioned."

"What about his family?"

"His real parents died in a car accident, and his foster parents live in North Carolina."

"Long way from home." Alex commented.

They ate their snow cones in silence. After a minute or two, Alex broke the silence. "You know, for a guy from the Carolinas, he doesn't have much of an accent."

"What's that?"

"Well, I figured he'd have some sort of Southern accent if that's where he's from, but he doesn't!"

"Hmm, that is strange."

"What about Stephen, did he say anything about him?"

"Same as last time. It's not important to the mission."

"Need-to-know basis, I guess he'd say."

"Yeah."

Sam collected her thoughts. If WOLFHOUND was supposed to be a secret, then why was Jacob so open about it? Is there something about WOLF we don't know? Who would know? Of course! Sam slapped the table, startling the others. "I know who to ask!"

They responded in unison. "Who?"

"MacDonald!"

"Whaaat?"

"He told us we always had an open line right to him, right?"

Clover remembered. "Oh, yeah! That's right!"

"Call him!" Urged Alex. "Maybe he can tell us something!"

Sam fished her Compowder from her purse and connected to MacDonald's line. A few seconds later, he showed up on the screen.

"Afternoon, ladies. Is there a problem?"

"Sort of. We need to know more about WOLF and WOLFHOUND."

"Are you in a secure area?"

Sam looked around. No one was within earshot. "Yeah, it's okay."

"Very well, what do you need to know?"

"Everything."

"That's a lot of information, Samantha. You're better off reading the file yourselves."

"Okay, not everything. We need to know how Jacob was involved, for starters."

MacDonald leaned back into his chair. "Jacob found out about WOLFHOUND in its seventh year of operation. He had already proven himself as a capable field agent on a couple of smaller assignments, and came to me wanting to get in on the project. I'm not entirely sure why he wanted to, or why I let him in." He took a moment to remember why. "Ah, now I remember. It was his eyes."

"His eyes?"

"I could tell by the look on his face that he wanted to make WOLFHOUND _his _project. I don't know why, but we needed more good agents on the project. I knew of his combat prowess and skill in espionage, so I let him in on a small part delivering orders to active agents in the project. From there, he worked his way up, excelling in everything he did. He moved up to monitoring WOLF activity within a few months, and soon enough he was a full-blown eradicator."

"What's an eradicator?"

"That was the codename given to agents who were inserted into the host nation's army and sent on raids against WOLF encampments and facilities. After that, he became a hunter. A lone wolf of sorts who actively hunted down important WOLF members, disrupted their communication and supply lines, and exposed them to whatever nation he was working in."

"How did he fare there?"

"That was where he earned his stripes, so to speak. He was digging up WOLF groups like there was no tomorrow. He was even finding them in places other agents were sure there wasn't any WOLF activity."  
"How did he do it?"

"I could tell you, but it would take hours. The short version is he used his wits mostly. If he found something suspicious, he never let up until he was absolutely sure the lead was a dead-end. I think that's why he succeeded where other agents had failed; he pushed himself to the absolute limit every time."

Sam remembered what Jacob said on the bike. "If I can't push something to the limits of what it was made to do, then I have no use for it."

While she was lost in her thoughts, Alex took the floor. "Who was the leader of WOLF?"

"This guy." An image of a severe-looking old man appeared on their Compowder screens. "Nicolas Setzer. An Austrian by birth, he was WOLF's ringleader. It took the combined efforts of Jacob and several other hunters to finally track him down."

"Where is he now?"

"Dead. The hunters tracked him down in Spain and lead the authorities to him. The raid turned into a firefight and Nicolas was killed. We thought that was the end of WOLF and disbanded WOLFHOUND. But it looks like we were wrong."

"So who's in charge now?"

"We can only speculate at the moment. Otherwise we don't know."

So WOLF's back, and they've got a new leader. Wonderful.

Clover asked the next question, the one that was really on their minds. "What sort of history do Jacob and Stephen have?"

MacDonald sighed. "Clover, you know that there are certain things that many people don't need to know. The only reason we've been so frank with you about WOLF and WOLFHOUND is that those organizations are directly involved with this mission."

"So you're not going to tell us anything you don't think we need to know to carry out the mission, is that right?"

"That's exactly right. There are things even Jacob doesn't know about because they are unimportant to his work."

"How can you do that?" burst Sam. "How would he feel if –"

"Jacob is fully aware that we are not divulging certain secrets to him. He understands that there are some things he doesn't have to know."

"Because he lives in the here and now?"

"If you put it that way, yes."

"Is this standard procedure?" asked Alex.

"Pretty much, yes. On most of his missions, he is unaware of certain facts." MacDonald's voice became almost threatening. "He's learned to accept this, I suggest you three do so as well."

The girls glared at MacDonald with a new level of distrust. "Thanks, MacDonald. We'll keep in touch." Sam slammed her Compowder shut with one hand and clenched it in her fist. A brooding silence descended on the table, making the already dreary day appear even worse. There were even more questions with no answers, only now the people with the answers had an excuse for keeping them.

Clover finished off her snow cone and stood up. "You know what? They can keep their silly secrets! I'm not going to let them stop me from having fun this afternoon!"

Sam saw she was right and stood up. "You know what, Clover? You're right!"

"I am?"

"Yeah, let's forget about everything for now. We've still got a few hours before we need to be back. Let's make the most of them!"

"Alright, Sam!" said Alex. "Let's go have some fun! We'll worry about the mission later!"

They put their Compowders away in their purses, and stowed the details of the mission into a compartment in their minds. For now, they were just a group of girls going to hang out at the mall, try some clothes on, talk to boys, and just simply have fun.

Sage Hotel – 12:00 am

Jacob and the girls quickly worked their way from one shadow to the next as they approached the back of the hotel. It was a cheap-looking place, the sort college students on long road trips with little money crash at when they can no longer drive. The building was two stories tall and curved into a horseshoe shape. The back of the building was mostly windows and concrete, making their approach easier. The most important feature, however, was a central air conditioning system, which sat behind the building, shrouded in darkness under a burned-out light. The four spies crouched on the opposite side of a hill behind the hotel. Jacob peeked over the top and scanned the area with his infrared goggles, found no one watching, and then motioned all of them to head for the air-conditioning unit. They hurried around the lit side of the hill and then huddled next to the machine. Jacob removed a kit from his belt and waited for the fans to start before removing one of the vent covers. He stuck his head inside and saw that it lead down at an angle before curving to the left about ten feet down.

"Alright, everyone in. Once we're inside, Jerry will be able to send us a layout of the facility. Stay quiet, stay calm, and stay out of sight!"

The nodded to confirm, and then crawled into the vent one by one, Jacob going in last. They inched their way down the slope, and then continued more quickly once they reached the bottom. At first it was almost pitch dark except for faint light coming from up ahead. The light turned into a vent opening, and Jacob paused to look through it. He heard footsteps coming into the room the vent connected to, and soon enough an armed guard walked in. Jacob lowered his goggles and used the zoom function to get a better look at the guard. He spoke almost at a whisper into his communicator.

"Be very careful, girls. These guys are carrying the same equipment WOLF used to carry; high-powered assault rifles and grenades. Don't expect any quarter from them if you're spotted."

"Gotcha," they all responded.

"We'll need to get out of these vents if we want to conduct our investigation."

Jerry's voice came on in their ears. "Already taken care of. We've sent you all the plans for the basement. You might be surprised."

The girls reached for their Compowders and Jacob for his PDA. Sure enough, the basements were big, extending well beyond the hotel above. Jacob studied his map for a moment and then said, "Keep going. At the next junction, I'm going to check out another area and try to find the lab. You three keep going on ahead and check out the warehouse."

"Should we try to find the security system as well?" asked Sam.

"Good idea. If you can disable it, the going will be that much easier." Jacob paused as a small cadre of guards walked down the hallway they were above. "Be careful. This place is crawling with guards."

They crawled ahead 20 feet to the next junction, where Jacob went right while the girls continued straight ahead. They kept going for a ways until Clover asked, "Where's the warehouse?"

Sam checked her Compowder. "It's about fifty more feet ahead. Keep going." When the vent finally dead-ended, Sam checked the room to make sure it was empty and then removed the vent cover. They let themselves down on top of a tall container and looked around. The room was sparse and cold. The walls were made entirely of concrete, and the only color came from the containers and an old jeep parked in front of the cargo door. Sam made a mental note of the jeep's location. She felt it would come in handy later on. She turned to the others. "Spread out and start checking the containers."

"What do we do if don't find anything?" asked Alex. Sam found it a little odd that she could only see her friends' eyes with the baklavas on. She remembered Jacob's words about the future. "Don't worry about it. If we can't find anything, we'll deal with it then. Let's go."

They climbed down from the container and opened their electronics kits to begin searching. Almost as soon as they started, they heard the service door open and a pair of guards entered. They didn't need to be reminded to stay out of sight, and kept their senses wary of the guards' presence.

Jacob continued down the vent, took a right turn, and then found a darkened, unoccupied room. He pried the vent cover off and let himself down. He walked slowly to the door and listened. He heard guards walk past and down the hall, talking noisily about something he didn't care about. Idiots, he thought. You're on patrol. Talking like that will make you miss something important, like footsteps or me opening a door. After their voices dwindled to a whisper, he cracked the door open and peeked out. Nothing. He checked for security cameras, and finding none, he crept out of the room and carefully closed the door. He could hear the guards coming back around behind him, so he got moving. He constantly recalled the layout of the basement. The hallway ran around in a circle and then connected with another hall that lead to the labs. As he rounded the corner, he saw a trio of guards standing in front of the passage. The patrolling guards were coming closer, so he let himself into a dimly lit room across from him. He'd have to find another way into the labs.

He looked around the room and saw a door on the other side. He picked up his PDA and checked the layout. The door lead to the barracks and armory area. To make matters worse, a tight security grid covered the whole area. He touched his communicator on and called Sam.

"Sam, come in. Where are you?"

"I'm in the warehouse. We're sweeping it for evidence."

"Any trouble?"

"There's a couple of guards in here, but we can avoid them pretty easily."

"Good. Sam, I need you to drop what you're doing and find a way to hack into the security system."

"What? Why?"

"I need to get into the labs, but between the security system and the guards, it's too risky."

There was a pause on the line. "Okay, I'm on my way. Just sit tight."

Sam informed the others of what she was doing, checked the positions of the patrolling guards, and crept to the door. She pressed a button on the wall and it slid open and allowed her through. She found herself in a short hall that opened up on a larger room that spread to the left and right. She listened for the sound of a patrol, heard nothing, and continued down the corridor. A pair of double doors occupied either end of the room, and a smaller door faced the corridor. She was about to dash across to the door, but then she remembered the security system. She flattened herself against the wall and peered around the corner. Sure enough, a camera was panning across the room from atop the right-hand doors. She waited until the camera was pointing away from her, and then hurried along the wall until she was out of the camera's viewing range. She crept along under the camera, hoping nobody would walk through the doors on her. She got to the other wall, waited for the camera to turn away again, and then dashed along the wall to the door. She opened it and stepped inside. She was in another hallway, doors and windows lining both sides. Some of the rooms were occupied, so she had to be careful. Just as she started down the corridor, she heard guards coming from the room she just left. She looked up and down the hall for a place to hide, and noticed the conduits and ventilation on the ceiling. There was just enough room for her to crawl into. She jumped up, grabbed a stout-looking conduit, and pulled herself up. Seconds later the guards entered the hall.

As they passed right underneath, she quickly sized them up. The guards were strong young men, each armed with an assault rifle, grenades, a pistol, and wearing vests over gray fatigues. They all walked with a soldier's swagger and looked into each room as they passed it. Once they left the corridor, Sam let herself down and ducked into one of the unlit rooms. She opened her Compowder and checked the layout again. She pulled up the security plan and saw a meshwork of lines that intersected at a point not far from her. She closed the Compowder and crept down the hall.

The next room contained a freight elevator that went up to the hotel above. The guards she just avoided were already on the ascending elevator and were out of sight when she opened the door. She rounded the elevator and entered the next room. Ahead and to the left was the security control panel. The room was occupied, so she needed another way in. She noticed the ceiling was made of acoustic paneling like in most other buildings, which meant she could remove one and crawl around up there. Once she was up, she followed a mass of wires to the space above the security room, careful not to step on any weak spots. She opened her Compowder and extended a wire with a clamp on one end. She clamped the wire onto an Ethernet line and the Compowder went to work.

Sam touched her earpiece on and called Jacob. "I'm hacking in now…okay, I'm in." She found the system where Jacob was and deactivated it. "Okay, the security is down in your area. All you have to worry about is the guards."

"Thanks, I owe you one. Stay where you are, you'll be a big help to the rest of us."

Alex and Clover met at one end of the warehouse.

Clover put away her electronics kit. "Find anything?"

Alex shook her head. "Nope, not a thing."

"So now what do we do?"

"I'll call Sam. Maybe she knows."

Alex called Sam on her earpiece. "Sam, we didn't find anything."

"You didn't? Alright." She paused for a minute. "Start searching this floor for anything suspicious. I can deactivate security as you go, so you should be able to move pretty freely."

"What do you mean "this floor?" asked Clover.

"Jacob just discovered there's a second basement level. Check your maps." Clover and Alex opened their Compowders, and sure enough, the map now showed another level below them. "Jacob is going to explore the second level. You guys take this floor."

"What about you?"

"I'll stay here and take care of the security systems. Don't worry about me."

Alex and Clover followed the walls to the door and out of the warehouse. They moved quickly and quietly down the hall and to the right in the large room. The double doors opened into an empty cafeteria. They crossed it and headed through the doors across the room. Another corridor connected the cafeteria to a series of offices patrolled by more guards. They skirted the guards and left the offices. The temperature dropped dramatically in the next room, and they could hear something loud through the walls.

Alex tapped Clover's shoulder. "Generator room?"

"Probably. Let's go in there and get some pictures."

They followed the noise into a large room occupied by four huge generators.

"Well, now we know how they get their power!" Alex called above the racket.

"What?" said Clover. She opened her watch and started taking pictures of the generators.

Alex decided to let it go and opened her watch as well. She moved around to see what was on the other side of the room, and as she did so, she tripped on a loose cable. She hit the floor and her seismic inducer popped out of her belt and rolled along the floor on its edge. It finally came to a halt under a generator and Alex breathed a sigh of relief.

Just as she started to reach for it, the hemispherical device opened up and four legs unfolded and attached to the floor. Clover and Alex watched in horror as the unit started vibrating faster and faster until they could feel the vibrations in the floor.

Jacob crouched atop a catwalk overlooking the garage. An assortment of vehicles was parked in the garage, ranging from ordinary sedans to light armored vehicles. He finished taking pictures and began to creep down the catwalk. The guards below him were unaware of his presence. He stopped when he heard a burst of static coming from one of the guards' radios. He listened closely, afraid someone had been caught.

"Tremors! It's an earthquake! All units report in!"

One of the guards answered. "This is unit seven in the hangar, we can't feel a damn thing, over."

"Unit four, no tremors here, over."

"Unit eight, all's well, over."

The other guard spoke up. "Where were the tremors felt, over?"

"I'm near the generator room, over."

A new voice came on the radio. "It's probably just a bad vibration damper. We'll get maintenance in there to check it out. Return to your stations."

The guards resumed their patrols, and Jacob continued towards the stairway at the end of the catwalk.

"Alex, Clover, what happened? The whole place just about went on red alert!" Sam tried to be careful not to raise her voice. After all, armed men were just a few feet below her.

"We, uh, had an accident."

"Calamity Jane here dropped her seismic inducer and started a small earthquake."

"I am not a klutz!"

"Listen, guys. There's a maintenance team headed your way. Better get out of there quick."

"Roger that." They responded.

She checked on Jacob's location. He had exited the hangar and was slowly working his way to the labs. A lot of guards patrolled the area, so he was taking his time. Sam's watch read 1:30. Have we been here that long already? I thought time only flew when you're having fun? This isn't fun, is it?

Jacob sat perfectly still in the shadows. His right hand was tensed and ready to draw his gun should the guard spot him. He'd let one of his shoes squeak on the polished floor and that got the attention of a guard. The guard looked into every possible hiding spot, pushing things aside with the muzzle of his rifle and moving slowly from one end of the room to the other. Not bad, he thought. At least you know how to properly search a room with a hostile in it. You'd be wise to call in backup.

Jacob's suit helped him melt into the shadow, and he maintained tight control over his breathing, never letting it get too hard. After several tense minutes, the guard had worked his way across the room, and then he decided he must have heard a rat or something. He called his findings in and left the room.

Jacob waited a minute for the guard to put some distance between them and then emerged from his hiding spot behind a metal shelf. The only thing that kept the guard from seeing me was the bad light over here and this suit, he thought. Then he thanked God for making darkness the way it was, and blessed the maker of his suit. When he was sure the guards were out of the way, he exited the room and headed to the end of the corridor, where the lab was. He approached the lab entrance and noticed the high-level security system and called Sam.

"Sam, can you unlock this door?"

"I think so, hang on…Okay, it's unlocked."

The doors slid aside and let Jacob into the airlock. He closed his eyes against the disinfectant spray and then walked through the inner doors.

The lab was cold and sterile. A row of computer banks lined one wall, and a row of large machines line the opposite wall. Jacob recognized them as the ultra-precise lathes and mills necessary to shape weapons-grade metals. However, these machines were cold and had been unused for some time. Not good. That means it may already be gone. He started to move towards the machines and record them when he the unmistakable feeling that a gun was pointing at his head hit him. Jacob leaped and rolled behind a control bank in the center of the room just as a gun fired. He drew his gun and turned around to face the assailant, and stopped.

Standing in front of another door and pointing his gun at Jacob was Stephen. "Well, so we meet at last, Jacob."

Jacob kept his gun leveled at Stephen and his eyes narrowed in malice. He removed his mask with his left hand. "Yeah, been a long time you psychotic bastard."

"Shall we continue this conversation in English, or would you prefer Russian?"

"Your call. Consider it a final favor from your executioner."

Stephen laughed and started speaking in Russian. "I never expected anything less than mercilessness from you."

Jacob answered in flawless Russian. "I'm just going by instinct and training, that's all."

"Instinct? I'm surprised you'd use such a word."

"Only because there's no other substitute."

"You've become a fine young man, Jacob. It's really impressive that you managed to elude my guards and circumvent my security."

"They're not much for wolves, Stephen. They're really green. Almost pups."

"What I do with my pack is none of your concern. Are you ready to fight?"

"I've been ready to kill you for a long time."

Sam tried to follow them on her Compowder, but once they started speaking Russian she completely lost the conversation. The security camera showed them facing each other, guns drawn and pointing at one another's heads. She noticed that Jacob spoke Russian with flawless ease, almost better than English, it seemed. An idea started to formulate in her mind, but stopped when the two started shooting at each other.

Jacob took cover behind one of the machines. When Stephen paused, he leaned out and fired several shots at him, but Stephen took cover behind a computer bank. They exchanged a few volleys of bullets, never hitting each other but coming very close.

"Hey!" said Jacob, again in Russian. "Why are we fighting with guns? Our score demands we settle it with our fists."

"That sounds wonderful!"

Stephen's voice came not from his cover but right next to Jacob's position. He looked up and saw Stephen's foot streaking for his face. Jacob crossed his arms in front of him and leaned back. He took the full force of the kick, and then used the energy to roll himself backwards and back onto his feet. He stood there, leaning low with one hand on the floor and the other clenched into a fist. The two men faced each other, their eyes trying to force their way into each other's minds. Stephen's eyes were cool and malevolent, while Jacob's were fiery and piercing.

Jacob stood up with a deep breath and planted his feet in a fighting position, and Stephen followed suit.

"Let's see what you've got."

Jacob lunged at Stephen in a flash and threw a series of lightning fast punches which Stephen blocked and countered. Jacob parried the counterattacks and stepped in close. He drove his elbow into Stephen's stomach, and then followed up immediately with a powerful palm strike to his jaw, and then kicked him square in the ribs, sending Stephen flying into one of the machines. Stephen bounced off the machine and went to his knees. He tasted blood and smiled at Jacob as he stood back up. "You're fast, very fast. And strong, too."

"It's nothing special, just some stuff I picked up along the way."

"Is that so?" Stephen readied himself for an attack. "You attack well, now let's see what your defense has to offer."

Stephen charged Jacob head-on. Jacob started to counterattack, but Stephen sidestepped and tried to clothesline him with his right arm. Jacob ducked under the arm and Stephen spun around and went for a backhand with his left. Jacob blocked it and tried to kick Stephen's foot out from under him. Stephen blocked it with a kick of his own, and then charged with a one-two punch. Jacob parried the first punch and then the second, but Stephen tried to knee him. Jacob blocked the attack, but he was unable to defend against another punch. It struck him in the face, and Stephen followed with a roundhouse kick that slammed Jacob into the wall so hard a safety sign hanging there almost fell off. Stephen backed off and let Jacob get back up.

"What's the matter?" He said as he got up. "Suddenly develop pity?"

"Hardly. I was just letting you get back up now that we know each other. Now we can truly fight, eh?"

"Aren't we cocky?" Jacob flew at Stephen for a second round.

Sam was so mesmerized by the speed and skill of the two that she barely heard the communicator ringing in her ear. She finally noticed it and answered.

"Sam! What are you doing?" said Clover.

"Jacob and Stephen are fighting!"

"What? Really? Who's winning?"

"Neither one right now. They're evenly matched." Sam watched them trade blows for a second. Stephen intercepted one of Jacob's kicks and threw him across the room. "Geez, they're fast."

"Doesn't Jacob have his gun?" asked Alex.

"No, neither does Stephen. For some reason they decided to fight hand-to-hand after they shot at each other for a bit."

"Why'd they do that?"

"I don't know. They started speaking in Russian and I can't tell what they're saying."

"Oh, Sam?"

"What's up, Alex?"

"You know how those seismic things weaken walls?"

"Yeah?"  
"Well, we found out it weakens floors, too."

Sam thought about what Alex just told her. They said her device got turned on the floor in the generator room, didn't they? She checked the layout of the basement. The generator room was right over the lab where Jacob and Stephen were fighting. "Oh, no."

She hurriedly contacted Clover. "Clover, how much do those generators weigh?"

"Oh, I'd say about 6 tons or more."

"Oh, crap."

The lights below her flickered with a sudden power surge, and the whole basement shook.

Jacob ducked another clothesline attack, stepped behind Stephen and delivered a solid punch to his kidney, then kicked him in the middle of his back and sent him sprawling on the floor. He was breathing heavily but not too hard. He was bruised in several places, but he put the pain into a compartment in his mind and focused on his opponent. Stephen stood back up again and stumbled just a little. He too was tired and hurt, but his face didn't show it. In fact, he was still smiling. This only made Jacob angrier. He tensed every muscle in his body to prepare for another attack. He was going to make sure this time Stephen didn't stand back up. Just as he was on the verge of unleashing his full strength on his opponent, the ceiling shook.

He and Stephen suddenly forgot about each other and looked at the ceiling. Time seemed to stand still as they stared at the ceiling and still nothing happened. Then everything started moving in slow motion. The ceiling started to collapse and send a hailstorm of debris down into the room. Jacob and Stephen leaped backwards with all their might. Jacob was in the air as a massive pile of wreckage fell through the ceiling and crashed down where he was just standing half a second ago. More and more wreckage fell through, broken power cables sending showers of sparks over everything. Jacob tucked his head against his chest and threw his feet over his head, causing him to somersault in mid-air. The extra momentum threw him clear of the last of the falling debris, and he landed on his feet with cat-like grace. It took him just a second to assess the situation. Eight tons of debris now cut the room neatly in two, and Stephen was on the other side, unhurt and unreachable.

They found each other through a small gap in the wreckage. Stephen looked around at the mess and whistled. "I suppose our showdown has been postponed?"

"Yeah, I guess so."

"Hmf, such an unfortunate coincidence. It doesn't matter. I'm finished with this place anyway. We'll meet again, Jacob. Then we'll finish this." He started towards the airlock.

"Don't disappoint me." Jacob was so angry he didn't know what to do. Anger won't get me anywhere. I have to stay calm. He put his feelings away and found his gun. He touched his earpiece on and called Sam.

"Jacob! Are you okay?"

"I'm fine, but Stephen got away. What the heck just happened?"

"A generator fell through the floor."

"How the heck did that…never mind, it can wait."

Sam was relieved that she didn't have to tell him about Alex's screw-up just yet. "Listen, security's going haywire. Every single guard is on high alert now, and there's a squad headed to the labs!"

"Wonderful. Listen, we've got to-" Sam heard someone shout, "Hey, who are you?" Jacob heard it, too. "Damn!" Sam heard a volley of automatic fire and a lot of yelling before Jacob's comm. link cut off.

Then the alarm went up and a voice came on over the PA system. "Intruder alert! Unauthorized personnel have entered the complex! All units are ordered to find them and are authorized to use lethal force! Secure the facility and neutralize the intruders!"

Sam took that as her cue to leave. She checked the security room. Only one guard, and his rifle sat in the corner. She disconnected her Compowder and jumped through the ceiling right onto the guard's head. He was out cold instantly. She took the chance to glance at the screens. Guards were running everywhere and searching each and every room. She wondered where Alex and Clover were. Her earpiece rang again and she answered it.

"Sam! Alex! Clover!" It was Jacob.

"Jacob!" they exclaimed at once.

"The jig is up, girls! It's every man for himself! Find your way to the extraction zone and wait for me there!"

"What are you going to do?" said Clover.

"I've still got some things to take care of here! Get to the extraction zone, whatever it takes!" There was another burst of automatic fire before his line cut off again.

Sam stepped out of the security room and looked down the hallway. No one there at the moment. She ran down the hall towards the automatic door, but found it locked. She went the other way, and saw a pair of guards step out of the door. They yelled, "Hold it right there!" before raising their rifles at her. Sam drew her gun and fired a few warning shots to make them keep their heads down and turned down the adjacent hallway. The door at the end opened for her, and when it closed behind her she kicked the control panel in and jammed the door. She could hear gunfire coming from several directions, and ran in the direction where she heard none. She ran down a long corridor and entered a large, low room. A pair of shadows dropped down behind her and she whirled around and found Alex and Clover with their guns leveled at her face.

"Sammie! We found you!"

"We gotta get out of here!"

"You don't have to tell me twice!"

They crossed the room and entered medium-sized room with two more doors and a corridor leading off one way.

Clover looked each way. "Which way do we go?"

Before anyone could answer, Jacob sprinted around the corner down the corridor. He slid as he made the turn, and cleared it just as an explosion went off just around the turn. He ran towards them yelling, "Go right! Don't stop until you're in the extraction zone!" He sprinted past and headed back the way they came.

The girls went through the right-hand door, and then through a few more doors. They entered a short corridor, and a squad of guards was at the other end. The guards saw them and immediately fired at the girls. They yelped and turned back as fast as their legs could carry them. They took a left turn and found themselves in a hallway that ended in two rooms on either side.

"We're trapped!" Exclaimed Clover.

"No we're not!" said Alex.

She removed the seismic inducer and placed it on the floor several feet from the door. Once again, the legs unfolded and the unit shook for a minute and stopped. Alex pulled on the line attached to it and pulled it back to her. They hid in the rooms at the end and waited. Within seconds to door burst open and the guards rushed in with their weapons ready. The moment they were all on the weakened floor, it gave way and they fell through to the lower level.

"Let's go!" Shouted Sam. They leaped over the hole and went back down the hall. The door was locked.

"What now?" said Alex.

Sam thought for a second. "The watches! They have lasers built into them!"

Sam and Clover cut away the hinges while Alex cut the lock apart. They kicked the door down and continued down a darkened corridor. Then the smell hit them. A metallic smell that they knew but couldn't put their fingers on. The lights in the corridor were out, preventing them from seeing down it. Alex was just about to switch her night vision on when a light flickered back to life and they remembered the smell.

Blood.

Dead guards littered the floor all the way down the corridor. The hall itself wasn't in much better shape. Nearly all the lights had been shot away, and the walls were peppered with bullet holes and scarred by explosions. The girls held back the urge to vomit and began picking their way through the dead. Their spirits sank a little more every time they stepped in a puddle of blood, and their horror increased with every lifeless eye that stared up at them.

"Sam, what-what-what's going on?"

Sam immediately thought of Stephen. Why would he kill his own men? Because he's cruel like that, that's why.

"Come on, Alex. Just try not to look at…them."

They bravely picked their way down the hall, and a movement partially obscured by shadow caught Clover's eye in an adjacent hallway.

"Sam, look!"

They turned and saw a guard sitting against the wall, still alive. They went to him and Sam kneeled in front of him. He was badly wounded and scared out of his mind.

"What happened here? Who did this?"

The guard didn't respond at first, and then a sentence escaped his trembling lips. "He-He's…a monster," and then slumped over, dead.

Sam stood up and tried to figure it all out. Was Stephen really this horrible? What if it wasn't Stephen? It couldn't have been Jacob, could it? They saw him coming from the opposite direction, so she believed it couldn't have been him. An explosion sounded from several rooms back.

"We'd better get moving. We're almost to the warehouse. We can use that jeep to get away."

"The sooner the better," said a despondent Alex.

They finally left the corridor of death behind them and found their way to the warehouse. No guards were around, and Clover immediately went to open the gate. Sam started the jeep and Alex climbed in. The door opened, revealing a passage that curved to the right.

"I'm worried about Jacob." She said.

"What?" the other two exclaimed.

"There's a killer on the loose here and he's still inside! We need to get him out!"

"But he said-"

Sam silenced her with a wave and pulled out her Compowder. She called up the layout of the basement and activated the tracking devices in their suits. Jacob's beacon showed up as moving rapidly down a nearby corridor towards the tunnel. All that stood between the end of the corridor and the tunnel was a thin wall.

Sam put the jeep in gear. "Come on! I know how we can save him!"

Jacob fled the guards behind him, periodically firing behind him to keep their heads down. He carried a pair of submachine guns and had one grenade left and one high explosive pack. He reached the open door at the end of the hall and closed it, an then kicked the control panel in to jam it. Then he realized a mistake he made earlier. The narrow room he was in now should have lead to another room, but the end was blocked off with fallen debris.

"I guess that was a mistake after all," he told himself.

He heard something on the other side of the steel door, and then saw sparks and a white-hot flame emerge from the bottom. They were cutting their way in. Jacob took a deep breath and stood in front of the door with both guns pointed at the door. In his mind's eye, he saw one man in front of the door with the cutting torch, and two or three more to the side, at least one priming a grenade. Idiots, he thought. You should have just cut a couple of small holes in the door and stuffed grenades in. Then you would have had me. You're nothing like the wolves I hunted.

His fingers tightened around the triggers as the flame made its way to the top of the door and started moving across. Then Jacob heard a peculiar sound. A high-pitched whine was coming from behind him, and the wall was starting to shake. It shook harder and harder for a minute, and then stopped. Suddenly the wall crumbled, and the girls were standing on the other side in front of a jeep.

"Come on, let's go!" called Alex.

Jacob looked back at the door and the flame, which was now working its way down the other side of the door. Sam thought he looked reluctant to break off the fight. He lowered his guns and jumped in the back of the jeep.

"Punch it!"

Sam floored the accelerator and left a patch of molten rubber behind the jeep. The tunnel wound its way around the basements as in ascended, and finally ended in open air. They were on a gravel road outside the hotel that lead back to the mountains. Sam drove the jeep down the trail until it dipped behind a hill.

"Stop! Leave it here!" said Jacob.

Sam stopped the jeep and turned it off. She turned around to ask Jacob why but he was gone.

"Where'd he go?"

Clover looked around. "I don't know, and I was sitting right next to him!"

They got out of the jeep and walked up a tall hill next to them that overlooked the "hotel." Despite everything that just happened, the "hotel" looked calm and ordinary as any other hotel.

The spies weren't saying anything at first. Then Alex just said, "wow."

"Yeah," came the reply.

They stood there watching the building, wondering if anyone was inside the façade and heard what happened if they did. They did notice a lot of lights were out, now.

"Well," said an exhausted Sam. "I suppose we should call and get someone to pick us up."

Alex was equally exhausted. "Yeah, that'd be best."

"You'll do no such thing."

They turned around and found three guards pointing their rifles at them. "Drop your weapons and put your hands on top of your heads."

They obeyed and removed their guns and watches.

"Hey, they're chicks." Observed one of the guards.

"You're right." Said the first guard. "We're going to have some fun with you three for what you did to our comrades."

"I've got a better idea," said an icy voice. "Why don't you let my partners go and I'll let yours live?"

The guards spun around and the girls looked to see who said that. Just at the edge of the light from the hotel, someone was holding the third guard from behind and pressing a gun against his head. The other two guards leveled their rifles at him. The girls could make out very little of the assailant, but the light faintly reflected off his goggles' triple lenses, giving him a demonic appearance.

The two guards slowly circled the newcomer in opposite directions, and he was careful to keep them both in front of him and the hostage between them.

"Now now, don't be hasty. I've done this plenty of times before, and I have no qualms about pulling the trigger."

"Bastard! Let him go!"

"Hey, I know who my father is! That's not a fair insult."

"Let him go or I'll fire!"  
"Right. As soon as he's free I'm dead and I don't want to think about what you'll do to them." He motioned towards the girls.

One of the guards was holding his rifle very still and aiming down the sites. Sam saw the muscles in his arm tighten and his finger start to squeeze the trigger. Sam was about to call out a warning, but the assailant saw it first. His pistol shot out in a flash and he put a bullet in the guard's face. He immediately turned the gun on the other guard and put several shots in his chest. The gun's suppressor was on, and all that was heard was the sliding of the bolt and the _whip-thump_ of the bullets. At the same time he jerked the arm wrapped around the hostage's neck and snapped it, and let the guard fall to the ground.

He walked farther into the light and asked, "Are you okay?"

They finally recognized it was Jacob, and were horror-struck at his brutal display. They heard someone moaning behind him. He turned around and found the guard clutching his chest in pain.

"We need to get him some help!" said Sam.

"No can do." Jacob said without pity. "His wounds are fatal. No way to save him." He turned on the laser on his gun and pointed it at the guard's head. The guard looked at him without fear and with full comprehension of what he was doing. "You're a good soldier. Go in peace." The girls looked away when Jacob pulled the trigger.

He walked over to where the girls were standing and looked them over. "You're not hurt. That's good."

Suddenly the truth hit Sam. "It was you, wasn't it? You killed all those people in the hallway!"

Jacob looked at her, his goggles still down and the mask hiding the rest of his face. "Yes, that was my doing. And that was just the tip of the iceberg."

"What?"

"What you saw was just a skirmish. I sent you three that way because there were even more the other way around."

They were speechless. He was so nice this morning. What happened to the man they knew? This wasn't a man. This was a monster standing before them; a monster under the employment of the US government.

He held out a device in his hand. "You might want to get down." He pressed a button and the entire hotel went up in flames.

When Sam could hear again, she screamed at Jacob. "How could you do that!"

"Orders."  
"What orders? We didn't get any orders to blow the whole place to kingdom come!"

"_You _didn't, but _I_ did. My primary directive was to locate evidence of nuclear handling and WOLF activity. My second directive was to destroy it."

The girls backed away from Jacob a couple of steps. The flames from the burning wreckage of the hotel bathed him in a hellish light, giving him the appearance of a three-eyed demon.

"The choppers will be here soon. Let's get to the extraction point."

The girls weren't sure if they should follow him. Sam watched him fade into the gloom, and looked to her friends. They shared her confused look. Reluctantly, they followed him into the darkness.


	7. Chapter Seven

Chapter Seven

WOOHP Headquarters – 7:30 am

None of the girls could sleep. Every time they closed their eyes, they found themselves standing in another puddle of blood, or staring into the lifeless eyes of another guard. Even though they'd seen more carnage in an R-rated movie, it was a different story seeing it for real. There were no actors, no special effects, and no props. Those were real people they saw. Real, dead people. They tried but failed to force the images out of their minds, and tossed and turned all night long.

Alex wondered how it was possible for Jacob to kill so many people and show no remorse afterward. She even witnessed him kill three men almost in as many seconds. How could anyone wield such a terrible skill and still be human?

Clover was no longer sure if their decision to stay with the mission was the right one. It was one thing to catch a psycho bent on some grand scheme. Wading down a trail of death to do so was entirely different. That sort of carnage was totally unnecessary, wasn't it? Are these people so bad that one has to choose between life and death when fighting them?

Sam was still shocked at Jacob's transformation. Within just a few minutes, he'd gone from a nice, determined, brave young man into a complete monster. Looking back, she knew she should have seen it during his fight with Stephen. She remembered that as soon as they saw each other, Jacob's voice became hard and cruel. She couldn't see his face very well over the camera, but she did notice his face become intensely focused. She assumed then that he was just preparing for a fight. But now she knew that he was really preparing to kill without conscience or hesitation. What kind of people are we working with? Killers. Every one.

Sam gave up trying to lure sleep to her eyes and sat up. She still felt insecure even in the safety of the WOOHP headquarters, so she pulled the covers close around her. Alex heard her moving and propped herself up on one elbow.

"Can't sleep, Sammie?" Alex was always the one to watch out for her friends and cheer them up. She wasn't sure if that was possible after what they'd witnessed.

"No," was all Sam said.

Clover sat up. "I can't sleep, either." She sat on the edge of the bed and put her face in her hands. "Ugh, what a night."

"No kidding," replied Sam. "What happened back there?"

Clover responded without looking up. "We got caught and then Jacob, whom I was just starting to like, turned into a total psycho. That's what happened."

Alex's bed was closest to the window. She got up and opened the blinds, but it did little to brighten the room. The sky was still overcast, and the clouds were thicker and slowly crossing over the city. It'll rain in a day or two, thought Sam.

Alex stood at the window for a few minutes, and then flopped back onto her bed with a sigh. We've got to stop thinking about last night, she thought. Well, if the past is too bad, then focus on the future!

"What do we do now, Sam?"

"I'm not sure. I guess they'll call us when they need us."

Clover stood up and headed for the bathroom. "Well, I hope they take their time, because I'm taking a nice, hot shower!" She closed the bathroom door. Soon enough they heard the water running, and soon after that Clover started singing off-key. When she got to the second verse, Sam and Alex couldn't repress their laughter anymore.

"Hey, what's so funny?" Clover called from the shower.

Sam stifled her laughter. "Nothing, nothing!" and then started laughing again.

"Well, "nothing" must be really funny! I hope I'm not missing anything!" Clover resumed her song where she left off.

Alex took control of her laughter and finally stopped with much effort. "What time is it?"  
Sam picked up her watch from the table. "Seven forty. Why?"

"I'm hungry. Is the cafeteria open yet?"

"I think so. Should we wait for Aretha Franklin?" Clover's swan song continued.

"Yeah, I suppose it's only fair. We're in this together, right?"

"Right!" Then an idea hit Sam. "Alex, the only way we're going to get through this is if we stick together."

Alex considered what she said. "That's right, Sam! We may be weak against this guy separately, but together we can beat him!"

The bathroom door opened and a column of steam followed Clover out.

"Geez, Clover. I hope you didn't use all the hot water."

"So what if I did? Do you honestly expect someone with a complexion like mine to take a cold shower?"

"No, I guess not." No one with an attitude like yours, anyway.

"What were you guys talking about?"

"Sam was just saying the only way we're going to get through this is if we stick together."

"Every time we went up against these guys alone we got beat."

"So we're sticking together from here on. Alone we're weak, but together we can pull through. I know we can!"

Sam and Alex put their hands together and looked expectantly at Clover.

Clover crossed her arms. "So, if we have to walk straight at a row of guys with machineguns, we're going to do it together, am I right?"

Sam looked at her friend confidently. "Right. No matter what happens from here on out, we work through it together."

"Even if it's the machinegun thing you said." Alex looked equally confident.

Clover smiled and placed her hand on theirs. "Sure, why not? I didn't want to die alone anyway!"

"Together!" they said in unison.

"Man, that was really cheesy." Said Clover. They all laughed.

Sam and Alex took their showers. Alex went first, so Sam ran out of hot water half way through hers.

Clover and Alex heard her yell, "Stupid cheap water heaters! What is this place, a log cabin?"

It was almost nine by the time they were ready to go, and by then Alex was starving. They left the room and headed for elevator and the cafeteria beyond. A few stragglers finishing their breakfast and the coffee guy at the shop in the corner occupied the cafeteria. No sunlight penetrated the clouds this morning, so it didn't feel as warm as it did yesterday. They got their breakfasts and found a table near the windows. The girls talked in hushed voices about the mission and the people involved. For some reason they weren't as energetic today, but the conversation still moved at a fast clip. The topics were the same subjects that plagued them from the start of the mission; Jacob's two personalities, the general secrecy surrounding him, WOLFHOUND's history, and Stephen's motivation.

"It's probably revenge." Said Alex. "He did say he lost his wife and daughter and his job. We've fought bad guys who were driven by less."

Clover agreed. "I'll say. I was actually getting tired of fighting people who decide to take over the world because their girlfriend dumped them in high school."

"Really?" said Sam.

"Yeah. I know it sounds strange, but this is a nice change of pace. I was beginning to think all bad guys were pushovers. This one will give us a chance to see what we can really do!"

"At least none of the bad guys we fought ever held a gun to the whole city!"

Alex leaned back in her chair. "Yeah, no kidding. Do you think our missions will get tougher if we get through this one?"

"If?"  
"Well, I'm just saying, you know…"

Clover sighed. "That's not very comforting, Alex. And it sounds even worse coming from you."

"Sorry, I guess my mind slipped for a second. You know we'll come out of this one alright, right?"

Nobody wanted to answer that one.

Sam suddenly remembered something. "Oh, I left my Compowder in our room!"

Clover looked at her watch. "Might as well go back up. Let's find out if Jerry has anything to tell us."

Alex got up and threw her garbage away. "What about Jacob?"

Sam and Clover started at that. "Well, I'm…sure he's alright. He can handle himself."

"Yeah, he takes orders from Jerry just like us! There's no need to talk to him if Jerry hasn't given us anything!"

Alex wondered why they responded like that, and then remembered. "Okay, I guess you're right." She started for the door. "C'mon, let's call Jerry! Maybe we'll get today off, too!"

They returned to find the beds made and the room a lot cleaner than it was when they left. Sam picked up her Compowder and lay down on the bed. She was just about to call Jerry when she noticed an envelope sitting on her pillow.

"What's this?"

Alex and Clover looked at her. "Hmm?"

"There's an envelope on my bed."

"Who's it from?" asked Clover.

"It doesn't say. It just says, "To the red-haired spy" on the front."

Alex and Clover sat down next to her. Alex looked at the envelope. "I don't like the looks of this, Sammie."

"Me either." Said Clover. "Open it."

Sam opened the envelope and removed a handwritten letter. She read it once over and gasped.

"What is it?"

"It's from Stephen. He wants to meet with me."

"What!? Sam, you can't go! There's no telling what he's going to do!"

Clover took the letter from Sam's hands.

To the Red-Haired Spy:

I wish to meet with you for a conversation. Meet me at the bench near the lake and the Sweet Olive trees in the park at 1:00. Come alone. Come unarmed. I would like to talk with you. I feel there are some things you need to know.

- Stephen Keireig

They sat in silence for some time.

"Sam, call Jerry," said Clover. "He'll know what to do."

"Right." Sam opened her Compowder and connected to Jerry's line. It rang several times, but Jerry never answered. "That's weird. Jerry's not answering." Eventually an office assistant appeared. "I'm sorry, Jerry is unavailable at the moment. May I take a message?"

"Yeah, tell him we called." Sam closed the Compowder and started thinking.

"Why would Jerry be gone at a time like this?" asked Alex. "It doesn't make sense."

"No, it doesn't. It doesn't make any sense at all."

The girls were silent while they tried to think of a reason why they couldn't contact Jerry. It was obvious he wasn't in his office, but why would he do that during a major crisis? And if he wasn't in his office, why didn't he have his wallet or any other means of reaching him? I just don't get it.

"Maybe you should call Jacob?" Alex suggested.

Sam was reluctant to contact him, but they didn't have much of a choice. She opened her Compowder again and called Jacob's line. His line rang many times, but he never answered. She closed the Compowder and started getting confused.

Clover was equally perplexed. "What's going on? We can't reach Jacob or even Jerry? That's never happened before."

"Not under normal circumstances, at least. But we're right in the WOOHP building. Why can't we reach Jerry?"

Alex scratched her head. "This is just too weird. Where is everybody?"

Sam thought to call MacDonald, but loathed the idea of doing so again. "Well, what do we do now?"

Alex read the letter. "Well, we need to decide whether or not you should go meet him."

"I don't like the idea of you going in alone, Sam," said Clover. "We just agreed to stay together through this thing, and now he wants to meet you all by yourself?"

"I don't like it either, Clover. But…"

"But what?"

"I was just thinking. Stephen knows where the bomb is, right? This might be a good opportunity to find that out!"

Alex saw the reasoning behind Sam's statement. She also saw the danger. "Sam, it could be a trap, just like last time."

"And this time you'll have no one to help you. I don't think you should go."

"I know that, and I don't trust him as far as I can throw him, but he has some things he wants to tell me. What if it's something really important? Something that could help us end this mission?"

Alex and Clover couldn't decide. They didn't want their best friend going to meet this maniac alone, yet they saw the logic in Sam's argument. He was holding all the cards. He knew all the secrets.

Finally, Alex spoke up. "Sam, if you want to go meet Stephen, then I'm with you one hundred percent."

"Me, too," said Clover. "We're not abandoning each other this late in the game. So what's it going to be?"

Sam thought long and hard. A one-time chance to get some information from the terrorist without a gun pointed at me with no innocent bystanders. It could very easily be a trap. If I'm unarmed, I'll be defenseless if he has any goons with him. I'm pretty sure there were a few WOLF soldiers left. There's no way Jacob could have killed them all. I know this line of work is all about taking risks. Some opportunities never appear again if missed. She made up her mind.

"I'm going to go see him."

Alex and Clover looked at her in silence. Sam didn't look at them. "Alright, so I'm going to see him. Now what?"

Clover thought for a minute. "Well, he said you couldn't have any weapons, but he didn't say anything about microphones or anything, did he?"

Sam considered that. "No. No, he didn't!"

"Where are we going to get one?" asked Alex.

"Let's try Jerry's office. He always has something there we can use!"

They made their way down to Jerry's office. The room below was filled with staff, but they paid the girls no attention. The girls found Jerry's office unlocked and unoccupied. After turning the lights on, Clover began searching the closets while Alex started opening and rummaging through the drawers in Jerry's desk. Sam noticed a glowing button near a screen in the desk and reached for it.

Alex saw it, too and grabbed Sam's hand. "Hold it, that might be the one Jerry presses to WOOHP us away!"

"I don't think so."

"Why not?"

"Because that's the button Jerry presses to WOOHP us." She pointed to a large and worn-down button labeled "WOOHP-away."

"Yeah, that's probably it." Alex let go of Sam's hand and stood away from the desk without Sam noticing. She braced for something to suck her into a tunnel or for the floor to vanish or the wall to grab her when Sam pressed the button, but neither happened. Instead, the desktop opened to reveal a small collection of gadgets, which Clover inspected while Sam read the list from the screen.

"Hmm, microphone berets with remote earbuds, sticky sap perfume bottles, tracking device-launching pens, and magnifying sunglasses."

"Ooh, these are pretty stylish!" Clover had tried on a pair of the sunglasses.

Sam picked up the beret and looked it over. "Hey, this'll be perfect for the meeting!" She pressed a small button and a pair of wireless earbuds popped out. She turned it on and stuck one of the buds in and could hear everything clearly. She handed the earbuds to the others and stuck the beret in her hair. They each took a pair of sunglasses and a bottle of perfume. Sam also took one of the pens, hoping for a chance to stick one on Stephen.

"Well, I suppose we should get going," said Sam. She checked her watch. "Hey, maybe we could get some lunch while we're out?"

"Sure!" said Alex. "We've got plenty of time before the meeting, so why not?"

They left Jerry's office and headed for the garage.

Los Angeles Public Park – 12:45 pm

They parked in the lot near the walkway leading into the park. The girls got out and Sam tested the beret. Alex and Clover could hear everything the beret picked up and told her so. Clover tested the sunglasses. They could zoom in to a good distance; enough to keep an eye on Sam and make sure she didn't get into trouble. The bench was a long ways off but still within their line of sight if they climbed atop a nearby hill.

Alex looked Sam up and down. "You ready, Sammie?"

"Ready as I'll ever be." She made sure the beret was fastened securely. A breeze picked up and started scattering the leaves and disturbing the surface of the lake. Sam brushed her hair out of her eyes and took a deep breath. "Okay, let's get this over with." Sam put her hands in the pockets of her jacket and started down the trail towards the meeting place.

The sky was gray. Children ran this way and that with their dogs or with other children. Some of them were throwing frisbees, and others were just playing tag. A few middle-aged and elderly couples passed her on the walkway. Unlike her, they were just there to keep in shape. Sam shuddered with the realization that she was there to make sure they could come back tomorrow and keep doing that.

Sam took her time getting to the bench. The trail followed the curve of the lake around to the other side, where it curved away from the lake and passed through a patch of trees. The bench sat between the lake and the trees, just far enough from the lake so one wouldn't get wet, but far enough from the trees so the bench wouldn't be covered in leaves come the fall.

Before she knew it, Sam had reached the bench. The trees above were in bloom, and their honey-like scent drifted down to her. The breeze rippled the surface of the lake, sending tiny waves washing against the bank. A family of ducks swam carelessly in front of the bench, quietly quacking to one another and occasionally dipping below the water in search of food. This would be a good place to bring a date, Sam thought. Too bad the guy I'm meeting is old enough to be my dad and has a bomb somewhere in the city. She sat down on the bench just as a gust blew her hair in her face. She removed the beret and used it to secure her hair. After doing so, she was aware of someone standing next to the bench.

"I see you accepted the invitation, and I thank you for doing so."

Sam looked up and saw Stephen standing beside her with his coat slung over one arm. Her blood turned to ice water and she started reliving the train incident.

"Do you mind if I sit down?"

"N-no. Go ahead!"

Stephen hung his coat over the back of the bench and sat down. "There's no reason for you to be afraid, child. I, too am unarmed, see?" He was wearing a vest and tie, which would be unable to conceal a gun if he had one. "Speaking of which, what is your name?"

"S-Sam."

"Sam, eh? Is that short for something or did your parents name you that?"

"No, it's short for Samantha."

"Then I shall call you Samantha, is that all right?"

"Yeah, that's fine. Why, is there a problem with it?"

"No, no. My family and myself always disliked calling people and things by nicknames."

"Why is that?"

"Because it's not who or what they really are."

"Oh."

Sam did her best to control her emotions, but she still couldn't completely hide her apprehension sitting just a few inches from a dangerous terrorist. She decided to cut to the chase.

"You said there were some things you wanted to tell me?"

"Yes, there are." He took a breath and savored the scent of the trees. "I'm sure there are some things your superiors are hiding from you, are there not?"

Sam took a deep breath to calm her nerves. "Yeah, but they keep telling us it's not important."

Stephen laughed. "Hah! Not important! Such foolishness! That's why I didn't want to go back into the service!"

"Didn't want to go back? You mean you could have gone back after you were fired?"

"Yes, and easily, too. After all, I knew the layout of a top-secret facility like I know my own home. On top of that I was an accomplished leader. They weren't about to let me off so easily."

"So why didn't you?"

"Because I was tired of playing their games."

"Games?"

"Yes, games. That's what this business is, a game. I was simply tired of the balancing act between disclosure and secrecy. I say you either shut up and don't say anything or become like a glass jar."

"Wait, so if you refused to go back, then that means…you essentially sentenced your family to death?"

Stephen thought about that. "Yes and no. My wife was with me all the way on that decision, and my daughter was only a year old when I left."

"Why did she do that? It doesn't make sense why she would put her own daughter in danger like that, let alone herself."

Sam saw Stephen's face soften and become lined with sadness. "My wife was a strong, intelligent woman. She knew I lived a life of secrets. All through my career, I wanted to be able to come home from work and tell her what happened that day, but I couldn't. It pained me to keep so much from her, and I grew to hate the service because of it."

"You put your family before your job, right?"

"Yes, they were the most important things on earth to me."

"So is this all about revenge for their deaths?"

Stephen leaned back. "You know, it's strange. When my wife died of Tuberculosis, I felt sad, but I wasn't completely devastated because I still had our daughter."

Sam tried to remember what she'd learned in psychology. "Was it because you saw a part of your wife still alive in your daughter?"

"Yes. I suppose that's part of it. I suppose I can also blame fate for this one."

"I don't quite follow."

"I have always strongly believed in fate, Samantha. When I was fired, I accepted it as fate that it would happen. When my wife died, it was the same way, although it did hurt a lot. But when my daughter died, that was something I could not accept."

"Why? Was it your fault or something?"

"Yes. It is one thing to deal with an unavoidable tragedy, but a tragedy that can be prevented is another matter."

"What happened to her?"

"The place we were living in at the time had very unreliable electricity. One night during a storm the power went out, so I used candles to light the house. When I went to sleep that night, I forgot to extinguish a single candle, and it started a fire. By the time I got Angelina out, she had already suffocated from the smoke."

"That's horrible."

"It's worse because it was my fault. It could have been prevented."

"What did you do after that?"

"I started WOLF."

"You started WOLF?"

"Yes."

"Why?"

"Because it was all I could do. By then, the new Russian government had all but forgotten me. I decided that if they did not want me protecting them, then I would do so by my own means."

"So starting a terrorist organization is your idea of protecting your country? Funny, I was just beginning to think you were made of better stuff."

Stephen snickered. "Samantha, do you understand duty?"

Sam thought about it. "It means doing what your commanders tell you to do without question and to the best of your ability."

"I asked if you understood duty, not a definition."

Sam thought for a while. "I don't think I follow."

"I didn't think you would. People who do nothing but blindly follow orders their whole lives never understand duty."

Sam let the insult pass, for now. "So what exactly is duty?"

"It is what drove me to create WOLF, and what drives Jacob to hunt me and anyone else who wishes to harm his homeland."

"With Jacob it's different. You're just a terrorist."

"Are we really so different, Samantha? Even I can't tell you everything Jacob has done in his lifetime, but by no means is he innocent."

"Yeah, I know. But the fact is you're still a terrorist bent on destroying my home, and we're going to stop you no matter the cost."

enemies. I've considered all the options, and I've determined that this is the only way to keep her safe."

"But you're going to murder millions of innocent people! How do you justify that?"

"The damages done to your nation are of no concern to me. All I care about is the well-being of Russia."

"Then, you really don't care what happens to anyone else?"

"No."

Stephen was starting to perplex Sam. He's not driven by revenge. He's not driven by greed. He's driven by "duty?" He's so calm about it, too. It's like he's on a crusade or something. He's fighting for what he believes is right. He's driven by the singular desire to protect his homeland by any means necessary.

"The fact is, you're still a rouge."

Stephen smiled like a teacher whose student has just comprehended a complex idea. "Ah, there's the rub, my dear! That's the real difference between you and I and Jacob. You act with the permission of your government, whereas I am rouge. All of us do illegal things. You just have permission to do so, that's all."

Sam wondered if what he said was true, and then thought of something else. "If you started WOLF to protect Russia, then are you bombing Los Angeles for the same reason?"

"Yes, that's part of it. I know that if I destroy this center of American culture, then it will humiliate the country."

"Won't it just stir up a hornet's nest like in 2001?"

"Yes, it most certainly will. But the hornets will have no targets to sting. I am acting entirely of my own accord. No terrorist networks to hunt down, no nations connected to me, nothing. I will perform my final act and take leave of this world."

Sam was seeing the mad genius of his plan. In 2001, there was an organization to track down and destroy, an enemy still around to attack. If Stephen's plan goes through, then there won't be anyone left to blame. The US will be humiliated on the world stage because we allowed a nuclear threat to slip through. We will appear weak to everyone, and lose all manner of credibility and respect from other nations. And on top of that, one of our crown jewels will be reduced to a crater.

Sam buried her face in her hands. "This is insane!"

"Isn't it, though?"

She looked up at Stephen, still sitting calmly and watching the ducks. "You said all of that was part of the reason, what's the other part?"

"To draw Jacob out into the open."

"What? Why would you do that? Why him?"

"As you probably know, Jacob was instrumental in bringing down WOLF. Even though I could have started over with little trouble, I let WOLF die after they caught by lieutenant and began working on this plan using the money saved from WOLF."

Sam remembered Jacob saying they had some history together. "So, this is an attempt to draw out Jacob so you can fight him again."

"Yes. I was thoroughly impressed with his skill for someone so young. I knew we had to face each other again, man-to-man."

"Why didn't you do it back then?"

Stephen waved a fly away. "Because there were too many people involved. How do you challenge a man to a fight if he's in the middle of a pack of Special Forces all pointing a gun at your heart?"

"I guess that would be pretty tricky, wouldn't it?" Sam smiled and tried to take the edge off the conversation.

"Yes, it is. So I bided my time, waiting for the right moment. When it came, I took the opportunity. I restarted WOLF and used an alias he knew about to get his attention, and it worked."

"And now you're going to fight him to the death before you set the bomb off."

"Yes, I need to see him one last time before I go, either by my hands or his."

"He won't make it easy. I've seen his work firsthand."

"Yes, and I've felt it. He's a talented fighter. But that's not the only reason it will be hard, for I still love him."

Sam almost fell off the bench. That would explain everything, wouldn't it?

"Wh-what did you say?"

"Yes, I love him. I can't help it. He is my nephew."

Sam breathed a sigh of relief and stopped it too late. Stephen gave her a puzzled look. "Did you think he and I were…?"

Sam blushed.

Stephen laughed long and hard. When he finally regained his composure, he grabbed Sam's shoulder and gave her a friendly shake. "Oh, I knew I liked you! From the moment I saw you on the train, I knew there was something to like about you!" He slapped his knee and let out another laugh. He sat back and took a deep breath to calm his laughter.

"What did you like about me?"

"It's your eyes. My daughter had the same eyes. The same shade of green, full of intelligence and potential."

"But you said she was only five when she died."

"There are things a father can see in his children at any age."

They stopped talking. Sam watched another family of ducks swim past. The wind picked up again and shook the tree leaves in a harmony no orchestra could ever match. Stephen rubbed his beard and listened to the wind.

Sam shifted in her seat, "What was your daughter like?"

Stephen recalled his memories of Angelina. "If she were still alive, she'd be your age right now. I think if the two of you ever met, you would have liked each other right away."

"It's kind of strange when I think about it."

"What is?"

"The fact that I could have a good friend, another girl like me, and yet I never got a chance to meet her."

"The path not taken, eh?"

"What?"

"Frost. One of your poets."

"Oh, right." Sam turned the conversation back to Jacob. "So Jacob's your nephew, right?"

"Yes."

"Then why do you want to kill each other?"

"I don't know what Jacob thinks, even though I know a lot about him, but I know that I don't want to kill him."

"Why not? You certainly tried back at the lab."

"Like I said, I still love him as my nephew. Do you ever really want to harm that which you love?"

"No, of course not. Who would?"

"That is exactly my dilemma. We are on opposite sides of a conflict, and thus we must fight one another."

"Doesn't it hurt to have to fight him? My mom drives me nuts sometimes, but I never want to hurt her!"

"Yes, it does hurt at first. But once we face each other, we are no longer family. We are just professionals on opposite sides of a battle."

"Just professionals?"

"Nothing more, nothing less."

"But why does he want to kill you?"

"For one, I am trying to harm the country he has sworn to protect."

"Then that puts us on equal grounds, doesn't it?"

"Almost. You see, our family is not a good family, and he hates us all for it."

"What do you mean?"

"Our family is the head of a major Russian crime syndicate. We've financed terrorists, rebels, criminals, and all manner of society's dregs."

"And Jacob hated you all for that? I don't blame him."

"Not at first, he didn't."

"Then when did he come to despise you?"

"I'll get to that, but first I must tell you something else. Do you remember me mentioning Jacob's "killer instinct" in passing on the train?"

"Yes."

"What do you think that is?"

Sam thought about it. "An instinctual ability to kill?"

"Yes, exactly."

"But don't all humans have some hidden desire to murder? Freud said -"

"Freud was a brilliant psychologist, but some of his views were flawed. My family came to understand that murderous intent is inborn, but the _ability_ to do so is not."

"Wait, so you wanted someone with the inbred ability to kill?"

"Yes. That has been our experiment for the past seventy years, since the end of World War One."

"Then, you've manipulated Jacob's genes somehow?"

"No. That was one guideline we agreed to when the experiment began; no artificial means of influencing the experiment."

"So it's been one giant breeding program."

"Yes. We carefully selected husbands and wives for the traits we desired to pass down. Strength, speed, intelligence, tenacity, and many other traits we wished to become part of the subject."

Sam felt bile rising in her throat. "That's sick."

"I suppose so, but that's in the past, now. We had almost given up on the whole project, and then Jacob was born."

"So the experiment was a success."

"An exceptional success. We needed only one look at the infant to know the project was a success. We had crafted the perfect soldier."

"So what happened? Why didn't Jacob go to work for your syndicate? Why did he turn on you?"

"Even though the ability was bred into him, Jacob was still affected by external stimuli. One day, he met a missionary's older son, who opened his eyes to our criminal behavior. Jacob began to see that we were indeed terrible people, and fled."

"How old was he when that happened?"  
"He was only ten. Amazing to think that he could make such a choice at such a young age. We thought he'd come back like most children who want to run away, but he was cleverer than we gave him credit for. He ran to the authorities."

"Wait, if he ran to the police, then how did he end up in the US?"

"We're not sure. I think the CIA's meddling was the cause of it."

"And since then, he's been dedicated to hunting his own family down." And then Sam realized something. "That's why he was so interested in WOLFHOUND."

"Yes. He knew about my plans for WOLF before he left."

"And when he learns there's a whole network assigned to hunt down his uncle's organization, he jumps at the chance. Geez, what kind of family are you?"

"A dysfunctional one."

"That's an understatement if I ever heard one."

"It doesn't matter, he will return to us eventually."  
"Why on earth would he want to do that?"

"It's not a question of want. He will have to face us all again someday."

Sam shook her head. "This is just too much!" She exclaimed. "It's just one plot intertwined with another! When does it all end? Jacob's a major cog in the peacekeeping machine and is on a mission to destroy his own family?"

"If he survives this one." Stephen took a deep breath and released it. "Eventually, Jacob will have to make a decision which will either make his life very long or cut it very short. He tries to deny it, but he knows it is inevitable."

"And that choice would be…?"

"I'm afraid that must remain a family matter, Samantha." Stephen looked at his watch. "Well, I've enjoyed this conversation, but I must be going now." He stood up and picked up his coat. The semi-friendly air around him vanished and was replaced with his cold, dominating aura. "It's been nice talking to you, Samantha. I hope you have a better understanding of the situation now."

Sam didn't look up at him. "Yeah, I understand. More than I wanted."

"Heh, that's how the truth works. Sometimes you get much more than you wanted, yet all of it is necessary, and not all of it is pretty." He turned from the bench. "I would say I'd like to meet you again, Samantha, but I'm afraid the next time we meet only one of us is walking away." He turned and walked toward the trees and vanished under their foliage.

Sam waited until his footsteps vanished before she allowed herself to relax. She looked down and noticed that her fists were still clenched so tight her nails were biting into her palms. She also noticed that her heart was racing, and she'd begun to sweat despite the cool breeze. She stood up and found her knees weak and her legs sluggish. All she could do was stand up trying to catch her breath. She felt like the scope of the mission had expanded tenfold in just a few minutes. Not only was the US involved, but also the whole world! She didn't even want to think of Jacob's implications anymore. She needed to sit down again, but felt the bench was cursed now. The best thing would be to just start walking. Right foot first, then left. Just get back to Alex and Clover.

Her feet started shakily at first, but soon they steadied and found their footing again. It took forever to get back to the parking lot. Alex and Clover were waiting at the car, both of them looking just as disturbed as Sam.

"Somebody tell me this is a dream," said Clover.

Sam took her time answering. "It's not a dream. It's a nightmare."

They stood there for a while, listening to the wind blow, lost in their own thoughts.

"I don't know about you guys, but I'm not quitting."

Clover and Sam turned to Alex. Her eyes were focused and her voice full of determination. "I'm not quitting! Yeah, maybe we are dealing with something bigger than we've ever seen, but I'm not giving up yet! The fact remains that this psycho wants to blow up our home, and I'm not about to let that happen!"

Clover was listless and distant. "Then what do we do? Our actions will determine the fate of the free world!"

"Then we'll just have to crank it up! If they're going to challenge us, then we'll have to rise to meet that challenge!"

Alex's courage stirred Sam. She wasn't her usual energetic and joyful self. She was determined and brave. "I agree, Alex. Why should we be scared and back down? We've been scared before and always saw things through to the end. This guy has to be stopped. How about it, Clover?"

Clover saw the courage in her friends' eyes and felt a flame rising in her heart. "Yeah, let's do it. I don't know what's in store for us, but we're going to meet it head-on just like we always did."

Sam held out her hand. "Together?"

Alex and Clover placed their hands on hers. "Together."

The sky was a little less oppressive, and the situation a little less grim. The girls returned to WOOHP full of courage and determined to stop Stephen, no matter the cost.


	8. Chapter Eight

Chapter Eight

Museum of Modern Art – The Next Day – 3:00 pm

The sky threatened rain.

Jacob stopped the car in front of the museum. It was closed for renovations, but they weren't here to see any exhibit. He turned the engine off and checked his gun.

"You three ready?"

The girls nodded a yes. They'd overslept this morning, a fact that dawned on them when their beds launched them through a hole in the wall, sending them down a tunnel and into Jerry's office. The first thing they noticed was that Jerry and Jacob were back. The second thing was they were in their sleeping clothes again. A trio of agents was standing by with bathrobes and slippers in hand, as if they knew the girls hadn't dressed yet.

"Good morning, girls."

"Good morning, Jerry."

"Where were you guys yesterday?" Sam had asked.

"Out."

"Out? Out where?"

"Out." Jacob had said with finality. The girls inferred from his tone the question was closed as far as they were concerned.

"Did you guys find anything helpful?" Alex had asked.

Jerry went behind his desk. "We may have found the location of the bomb."

All remnants of sleep had immediately vanished from the girls. "Really? Where is it?"

"We don't know yet, but we've found someone who does." Jerry displayed a picture of an overweight, Hispanic-looking man. "This is Ramirez. He's the leader of a local gang with a lot of connections in the city. Apparently his gang helped Stephen secure a location for his bomb in return for advance warning."

Jacob continued. "We've worked with the FBI and arranged a time and place to meet him. In exchange for a sum of cash, he'll tell us where the bomb is."

"How much?" Clover asked.

"Twenty million dollars."  
"Whoa! That's a lot of money for a small piece of information!"

"Considering how many lives are on the line, I'd say that's a bargain."

Jacob and the girls stepped out of the car. Jacob opened the trunk and removed a briefcase. He closed the trunk and started up the steps to the museum.

The girls recalled the briefing that morning.

"This is how it will work," Jerry said. "Jacob is acting as the negotiator and will handle the money. He is acting as the sole mediator with Ramirez, so you three are there as his backup."

"What will we do?" Sam asked.

"If all goes well, nothing." Said Jacob. "You three are there to make sure Ramirez doesn't try anything funny, and if he does, help me get out of there."

Sam had wondered if that was really necessary, considering his work at the lab.

Jerry displayed a plan of the museum. "The museum is divided into two wings, with a courtyard for open-air sculptures between them. You're to meet Ramirez and his gang there to exchange money for information."

"What if he double-crosses us?" Alex had asked.

"According to the FBI, he shouldn't. He drives a hard bargain, but at least he keeps his word. Which, as you may well know, can be good or bad when dealing with his type."

As Jacob and the girls climbed the steps to the front door they recalled the next part of the briefing.

"There's a guard at the front door, but I've already arranged for him to let us through without any trouble. Just stay calm and he won't suspect anything. As far as he knows I'm just a visiting entrepreneur with some family."

They climbed to the top of the steps and paused out of sight of the guard. Jacob peered through the glass and saw him sitting behind the security desk.

"Okay, he's alone just like we planned. Stay cool and do like I do." He was just about to go in the door when Clover said something that made him freeze.

"Hey, that's David in there!"

He turned around menacingly. "Who is that?"

Clover realized her mistake and tried to play it off as being nothing. "Oh, just a guy from our school!"

"Does he know you three well?"

"Umm…"

"Tell me the truth, girls. If he recognizes you we could be in big trouble."

Alex tried to act innocent. "Well, we have all tried to date him at some point."

Jacob sighed. "Great, this is all I needed. Wait here." The girls stayed put while Jacob entered the museum. They saw him and David wave hello to each other, and David stood up and started talking with Jacob. Then, without warning, Jacob shifted his weight, shuffled his feet, and almost instantaneously buried his left fist in David's stomach. David doubled over and passed out. The girls gasped. Without letting him fall, Jacob grabbed David's unconscious body and dragged it behind the desk before signaling the girls to enter.

"Why did you do that?" they asked at once.

"Because I couldn't risk him recognizing you three and putting this little rendezvous in jeopardy!"

Clover leaned over the desk and looked at David's unconscious form. A bit of drool was hanging out one corner of his mouth, and his eyes were rolled back into his head behind half-closed eyelids. She saw that, thankfully, he was still breathing.

"Will he be okay?"

"He'll be plenty sore when he wakes up, but otherwise okay."

"Won't he call the police when he wakes up?"  
"Jerry's taking care of that. Let's focus on our objectives."

"You'll proceed through the lobby to the back of the museum." Jerry had said. "The meeting place is in the sculpture garden in the courtyard between the wings of the museum."

"What do we do?" Sam had asked.

"Jacob will proceed into the courtyard and conclude the negotiation. You three should spread out along the sides of the courtyard to keep him covered."

"Like Jerry said, this guy keeps his word, but there's no telling what will happen after I conclude the negotiations, so stay sharp."

Jacob made certain David was down for the count, and then stood up and motioned the girls to follow. Their steps on the polished marble floor echoed down the empty corridors. Jacob kept a steady pace and marched with the briefcase in hand towards the back of the building. The walls of the museum were bare, the paintings removed for the renovations, and the sculptures either removed or covered in blankets to protect them from the construction. The halls were dimly lit, casting a sense of foreboding on the whole place. The girls pushed their fears from their minds and resolutely followed Jacob.

They passed several exhibit halls and walked through an atrium before they came to a large pair of elaborately decorated bronze doors.

Jacob placed his hand on the doorknob. "Alright, this is it. Stay cool and be ready for anything. Just like we planned." The girls nodded assent and Jacob opened the doors to the courtyard.

Despite the modern layout of the museum's interior, the courtyard possessed a classical design. The neatly trimmed lawn was shaped by symmetrically laid out concrete paths. Finely maintained hedges bordered parts of the concrete close to the wings of the building, separating the sculpture garden from the rest of the courtyard. Gothic-style windows covered the second-story walls, separated by buttresses that formed a row of columns that separated the walkways from the rest of the courtyard. An arched walkway at the end of the courtyard connected the wings at the second story over an old-looking iron gate to give the appearance of an apse. The clouds hung low, giving the impression of a ceiling to the boxed-in courtyard. The whole place seemed like some sort of cathedral with the sky as the ceiling. According to a plaque near the door, the courtyard's designer chose this design to remind patrons and artists of the origins of their craft.

Clover walked away from the door and stopped near a statue where she could see most of the courtyard. Sam and Alex spread out to the right and left, and took up positions near the middle of the courtyard and waited. Jacob walked straight into the sculpture garden along a straight, narrow cobblestone path, which led to a large iron sculpture that loosely resembled a fencer in the middle of a lunge. The girls readied their gadgets and kept their eyes peeled for trouble.

"Now, time for your gadgets." Jerry had said. "I had several laid out already, but certain individuals - who shall remain nameless – decided to sneak into my office in my absence and make use of them." He pressed a button and a new set of gadgets appeared. "We've come up with some new gadgets you should find useful. These decorative pins house sound amplifiers which makes them perfect for listening to someone talking out of earshot, and come in three distinct designs." One pin had a flower, another a peace symbol, and the third a colorful fish.

"You'll also want these lipstick smoke bombs, mascara stun grenades, and you already have the super glue perfume bottles and magnifying sunglasses."

The girls took the gadgets and examined them, and then Alex noticed something was missing.

"Hey, why doesn't Jacob get anything?"

"I'll just be taking my gun. I won't need any surveillance equipment since I'll be talking directly to their leader. I'll be a sitting duck out there, so I'm counting on you guys to watch for trouble."

"What do we need to look for?"

"Count on him having backup. If you see any signs of a double-cross, get my attention by any means necessary."

Jerry broke in. "I hate to tell you three this, but the FBI has requested that all of you carry firearms as well, just as a precaution."

The girls sighed as one. They were tired of carrying guns around, and longed for their old hairdryer / flamethrowers / laser guns.

"Well, it's just for this one mission, right?" Alex had said. "After this, we'll have him, and then we won't have to use guns anymore, right?"

Jacob smiled a little. "Yeah, I hope you're right, Alex. The sooner we can close this mission the better."

Jerry straightened his tie. "Yes, it was a rather big risk getting the FBI involved, so we'd rather wrap this up before it leaks to the public."

The girls kept one eye on Jacob and another eye on the rest of the courtyard. Jacob walked down the path to the sculpture, where a pair of figures sat. The bigger one lit a cigarette, and the smaller one discarded his. Sam was indignant that they'd deface someone's valuable artwork like that, but pushed the thought aside to focus on the matter at hand.

When Jacob was about fifty paces from the sculpture, a gruff voice said, "That's close enough, my friend." Jacob obeyed and stopped.

The two figures stepped away from the sculpture. The girls recognized the bigger one as Ramirez. He was surprisingly tall, taller than Jacob and his weight only made him look more imposing. The smaller man was wiry and intelligent-looking. Probably a bookkeeper, Sam thought.

Jacob took a few seconds to gauge the situation. Ramirez and the smaller guy were probably armed. He knew there were several men on the roof, and probably a few more hiding in the garden. He guessed that most of them were armed with pistols and a couple had automatic weapons. When Ramirez stopped thirty paces away, Jacob opened the negotiations.

He nodded towards the smaller guy and said, "Who's he? I thought you were alone for this negotiation."

Ramirez shrugged. "Him? He's no one. Just a bookie, that's all. Think of him as the money counter."

"As long as he keeps his trap shut that's fine with me." Jacob's mannerisms were professional and straightforward.

The girls could hear everything with their pins. Alex and Sam had their sunglasses on while Clover kept an eye on the entire courtyard.

"I see that you did not come alone either, negotiator. Who're the kids?"

"Just watching my back."

"Odd choice for backup."

"They're about the best backup I'd ever want."

Ramirez took a puff of his cigarette. "Well, let's keep this short. Do you have the money?"  
Jacob kneeled down and laid the briefcase on the ground. He released the latches and opened it. Both leaves of the case were lined with money, lots of money. Jacob held the case up so Ramirez could see all of it. "Twenty million dollars in unmarked bills, fresh from the mint."

Ramirez puffed on his cigarette. "My eyes aren't what they used to be. Why don't you throw a stack over here so I can make sure you're not pulling a fast one on me?"

"That wasn't part of the deal. As negotiator, I have the right to terminate this negotiation if the terms are breached."

"Oh, come now! You need my info, and I know just how bad you need it. Just throw me a stack so I can check the money."

Jacob hesitated, and then reached for a stack.

"No, not that one." Ramirez interrupted. "Give me the one two rows down from your hand."

Jacob obliged and tossed him the stack. Ramirez handed it to the bookie and said, "Check it." The bookie flipped through the stack, smelled it, scrutinized a few bills, and then handed it back saying, "It's real."

"Very good, Mr. Negotiator. Now, slide the case over here and I'll give you what you've bargained for." Jacob closed the case and stood it up. Just as he was about to stand back up, Ramirez told him something unexpected. "You know, for an extra fee, I can tell you _when_ our dear terrorist is setting the bomb off."

Jacob hesitated. The girls gasped. "How much would this extra fee be?"

"Oh, I don't know; ten million dollars, perhaps? You don't happen to have ten million extra on you, do you?"

"All I've got is what's in this case."

"Then I'm afraid I can't tell you that extra info."

"Then we'll have to make do with what we've got." Jacob stood up, placed his foot on the case, and shoved it over towards Ramirez. Ramirez signed the bookie to get the case, and he did so. When the bookie and the case were back on their side, Ramirez took another puff from his cigarette and discarded it.

Jacob tensed his right arm, ready to reach for the gun inside his jacket. "I've done my part. Are you going to uphold your end of the bargain?"

"Unlike most people in this town, I always keep my promises, so consider this your lucky day." Ramirez took a deep breath and exhaled. "Now listen closely, because I'm only going to say this once: The bomb is on the roof of-" he stopped and stood still, listening for something.

"Ramirez! Are you going back on your word?" Then he heard something too – a steady _whup-whup-whup-whup_ – and it was closing fast. His heart sank. Within moments, a black helicopter appeared from over a wall and hovered over the courtyard. As lines began to fall from the helicopter, a voice coming from the helicopter said "This is the FBI! Ricky "Ramirez" Santara, you are under arrest! Throw down your weapons and surrender!"

Jacob yelled "Those idiots!" over the rushing wind and whine of the helicopter engines.

"It's a double-cross!" Bellowed Ramirez. "Everyone out! Cover me!" Jacob dashed for cover as figures appeared on the roof and began firing at him and the SWAT team already on the ground. He looked back to see a guy with a grenade launcher on the roof load the single-shot barrel and aim at him. Jacob dove behind a low wall just as the grenade blasted a crater where his feet were moments before. The SWAT team returned fire just as men came out of their hiding spots in the garden and started firing on the SWAT team. The girls took cover behind columns and statues and drew their weapons.

Jacob looked up from behind the wall and spotted Ramirez and the bookie laying just a few paces from him with their hands over their heads. Ramirez looked up and saw Jacob.

"You double-crossing snake in the grass!"

"This wasn't my idea, I swear!" Jacob ducked as a burst of automatic fire pockmarked the wall. Jacob drew his weapon and waited for the bullets to stop before returning fire at the roof. He managed to wound the gunner before taking cover again. A thug ran past him without noticing and Jacob realized he was trying to get a better position to fire on Alex. Jacob put a bullet in his back and dashed from his cover to a column next to where Alex was hiding. He crouched behind the column and fired a few shots at the thugs in the garden still fighting with the SWAT team. He spotted movement to his right, and fired two bullets into a thug as he tried to duck behind a column.

"Alex! You okay?" He yelled over the mayhem.

"I'm fine! What happened?"

"The FBI decided to do things their way!"

"So much for nothing happening!"

Clover didn't need anyone to tell her that the courtyard was pure chaos. The thugs had the SWAT team pinned down in the garden, but were outgunned by the SWAT team. Stray bullets were turning the beautiful windows into checkerboards, and the others were pinned down. It was getting hard to tell whom to root for, and then she noticed the guy with the grenade launcher taking aim at Alex and Jacob's position.

She screamed at the top of her lungs, "Roof!"

Jacob got the hint and leaned out from his cover and shot at the thug three times. The third bullet found its mark in his arm and knocked him down. He still managed to fire the grenade, but it went wild and hit the wall above Jacob and Alex, raining dust and masonry all over them and shattering the window above.

She looked to the right and saw that Sam was in a bad position. She was only covered from a few angles, and thugs on the left wing were moving around to shoot at her. Clover primed her mascara stun grenade, ran out into the courtyard, and hurled it onto the roof. The grenade landed right at the thug's feet. There was a blinding flash on the roof and a deafening report. When the light faded none of the thugs on that side were standing anymore.

"Geez, Jerr. A little on the overkill?"

The thug with the automatic weapon spotted Clover and turned his weapon on her. Clover saw him aim at her and somersaulted backwards while bullets danced around her feet. She flipped back to her cover and rolled behind it. She felt something small fly right past her right arm, followed by an intense stinging sensation. She looked at her arm and saw a rip in the jacket sleeve, and then felt blood begin trickling down her arm. She pressed her hand over the wound and tried to close her mind to the pain and the warm fluid tracing paths down her arm.

Sam dashed to a safer spot once the dazzling light from the stun grenade faded. Even the SWAT team had been distracted by the unexpected explosion, but less so than the thugs. This gave the SWAT team a chance to flush them out of their hiding spots and drive them to less secure locations. Unfortunately, one of those locations was just a few feet from where Sam was hiding. A thug hid behind the column without noticing Sam and turned his shotgun on the SWAT team. Sam panicked and started fumbling for her gun. The thug finally saw her sitting there and brought his weapon to bear on her while simultaneously backing towards a better position. Sam ducked behind the column just as a round of buckshot sheared off a chunk of masonry. She remembered her super glue perfume bottle and held it ready. She took control of her breathing and ran from behind the column with her head low and the bottle ready. The thug was still fighting the SWAT team, and saw her move out. He turned to fire at her, and then Sam tripped, causing him to miss. Sam knew she might not get another chance to get up, so she threw the bottle at his feet as she hit the ground. The glass shattered, spreading the sticky substance everywhere. The thug was still moving when the epoxy instantly cemented his shoes to the ground, causing him to fall backwards and get the rest of himself stuck, as well as his gun.

Sam got back up and retreated to the safety of the column to assess the situation. The SWAT team had subdued the last thug on the ground and was focusing on the ones above her. Jacob and Alex were still pinned down across the courtyard, and Clover was clutching her arm at the entrance. Jacob leaned out from his cover and fired at the thugs on the roof. She heard a faint cry followed by a thug crashing down into a shrubbery, his grenade launcher clattering to the ground after him.

Sam was content to remain in the safety of the column and wait for the battle to end, but that was not to be.

Ramirez and the bookie had taken advantage of the distracted SWAT team and were making a break for it, briefcase in tow. Sam drew her gun and followed them towards the back gate.

Jacob reloaded his gun. A second helicopter had arrived and was about to drop another SWAT squad off on the roof with the thugs still on it. The automatic gunner and the other thugs still had them pinned down, but at least the grenadier was gone. Alex flinched and covered her face as another burst of automatic fire carved a path past her column.

"What do we do now?" she yelled over the gunfire.

"We'll have to wait for the SWAT team to clean things up and then sort out this mess."

"Where's Ramirez?"

"Dead, probably."  
"Or at least playing possum."

"That, too." He checked on Clover's location. She was still hiding behind her cover, wounded, but not badly.

"Where's Sam? I don't see her!"

"What?" Jacob looked across the courtyard to where Sam was supposed to be and didn't see her.

"Wait, there she is!" Jacob looked to where Alex was pointing. Sam was running down the walkway to the iron gate. He looked over that way and saw Ramirez and the bookie jumping over the fence.

Dammit! I don't need this, he thought to himself. "Alex, I'm going after Sam! Go get Clover and the two of you get out of here however you can!"

"Where do we go?"

"Go back to WOOHP. I'll get Sam and be back there as soon as we can." He stepped out just as another group of thugs appeared on the second story and started shooting at him. He leaped back behind his column and turned to Alex. "Alex! I need some cover!"

"Right!" She drew her lipstick / smoke grenade, primed it, and tossed it into the middle of the courtyard. After a couple of seconds, the device started spewing a thick, dark smoke that created an opaque, twisting corridor stretching across the courtyard. Jacob took a deep breath and charged straight into the smoke. He could only see a few feet in front of him, but that was just enough for him to avoid a bench, a plaque, and leap over a shrubbery. Bullets fell around him, but none close enough to cause alarm. He exited the smoke under the other walkway and immediately pursued Sam and Ramirez.

Sam leaped over the short fence and followed Ramirez down the street facing the back of the museum. For a fat man and a skinny guy, they were fast. She followed the criminals down the alley and then around a right turn. She heard footsteps behind her and looked back to find Jacob catching up.

"Ramirez is getting away!" she said between breaths.

"I know! Keep going!"

The chase led them farther and farther from the museum. Soon they could no longer hear the helicopters or the approaching sirens. Without any communicators aside from Sam's Compowder, they had to assume Alex and Clover were safe.

The streets became narrower and dirtier as they continued the chase. Ramirez and the bookie kept up a steady pace. They threw trashcans and boxes behind them to slow Jacob and Sam down, but that did little to slow them. The buildings around them were looking older and more run-down as they ran, and Jacob began feeling that something wasn't right anymore.

He remembered what it was when they followed Ramirez around the next corner. A pair of thugs were lying in wait behind a dumpster, and a third behind a staircase.

"Get down!" He yelled as he shoved Sam aside behind a wall and dove across the street and crouched behind the other corner. The thugs fired warning shots to test them and keep them out of sight until their boss got away safely.

Jacob held his gun ready. "Sam! We're in Ramirez's territory!"  
Sam knew the implications of such a statement. "We've got to get out of here!"

"Not with them here!" He leaned out into the intersection and got two shots off before pulling back to avoid a volley of bullets. He looked across at her, and she saw the deathly serious look forming in his eyes. "Sam! You've got a better angle on the guy behind the stairs! Take him out!"

Sam held the gun tightly in her sweaty hands. She edged closer to the corner and took a deep breath. She leaned out quickly and fired carelessly at the thug hiding behind the stairs and retreated behind the corner.

"Sam! You've got to shoot him! I can't get a good bead on these guys with him there!"

"I can't!"

"What?"

"I can't shoot him! I can't kill anyone! Not like you!"

"Don't think about it, Sam! Just point the gun and pull the trigger! Don't think, shoot!" Jacob fired a few shots around the corner to get their heads down and give Sam a chance to fire. She leaned out and pointed her gun at the thug behind the stairs. She saw him lying there, reloading his gun. She saw his second-hand clothes and old sneakers. She saw the whites of his eyes framed by a brow narrowed in concentration. She saw him shouting advice to his friends behind the dumpster. She saw another teenager, not much older than her. She raised the gun an inch and fired. The bullet hit the wall just over the youth's head, causing him to flinch and expose himself. Jacob took the chance and fired two shots, and the youth fell. They both retreated behind the walls. Sam was drenched in sweat and breathing hard.

"Good work, Sam!" Jacob yelled from across the way. "Keep their heads down and I'll do the shooting!"

I don't have to do the killing? All I have to do is make sure they can't shoot us? Sam looked down at her gun. Yeah, I can do this! I don't have to kill anyone! Let Jacob do it. He's used to it. There's no need for me to get blood on my hands. I can do this! She tightened her grip on her gun and waited for Jacob's signal. When he nodded his head, she leaned out and took a split second to look around.

The two remaining thugs were still behind the dumpster. One was firing around the side and the other over the dumpster. Sam aimed at the one standing over the dumpster, moved the gun a little to the side, and fired two shots. The thug ducked behind the dumpster and lost his balance. Jacob fired and took him down in one shot. They retreated around their corners again.

"Good job! One more to go!"

"Then we can get out of here!"

"You bet! One more time!"

Sam waited for the next signal. When Jacob gave it to her, she leaned out and pointed her gun at the dumpster. The remaining thug was leaning out as well and pointing his gun right at her position. She saw him pull the trigger and a flash erupted from his barrel followed by an almost invisible puff of smoke. She felt a strange sensation on her left side just above her waist. She felt a warm sensation and looked down. She saw a red spot on her blouse, and it was getting bigger.

The world changed suddenly. The vibrancy of the colors left and they became diffused and muted. Details vanished from objects and all she could see were their main features and the differences between shades of light. It was like looking at a Van Gogh painting. The whole world blurred, and the effect only worsened whenever she looked to something else.

Sounds became distant and remote. She heard what sounded like Jacob's gun firing three times, much too slowly, and then she thought she heard him say, "That's the last one, let's go!"

"…Sam?"

She saw the world blur badly as her head apparently made a lot of movement. When the blur went away, she was looking at the street from a bug's-eye-view, and everything was getting dimmer. She faintly heard Jacob yell, "Sam!" and saw him rush to her side as if in a dream. The last thing she saw was him kneeling over her with a frightened look in his face, and the last thing she heard was him shouting her name, followed by a peal of thunder.


	9. Chapter Nine

Chapter Nine

"Sam?"

"Sa-am!"

"Sam, wake up honey!"

Sam turned over under the comforter and tried to ignore her mother.

"Sam, come on. It's time to get up."

Sam lowered the blankets and peeked out. The lights were off, and her mother stood at the door with the light pouring in from the hallway. She took one look out the window and pulled the blankets back over her head.

"Come on, Sammie. You can't stay in bed all day."

Sam muttered from under the sheets, "Who says I can't?"

"I do. Now let's go."

Every day was another day Sam counted towards being in high school. However, every day was also another day she was in junior high.

"Why do I have to? There's nothing important happening today."

"Because it's a great day today, Sam." She heard her mother enter the room and walk over to her bed.

Sam looked out from under the covers and out the window. The low clouds formed a continuous sky of gray. The thermometer hanging outside the window read 40°. A strong wind was blowing outside. Nope, no reason to go outside today, she thought. She retreated under the covers saying, "It doesn't look like a great day to me. It looks awful."

She felt her mother's weight compress the foot of the bed. "So the weather's bad outside, what does that matter?"

"It means there's no point in going outside if it's cold, wet, and windy."

"That doesn't mean good things won't happen."

Sam lowered the blankets to look at her mother. "Huh?"

"Sam, look out the window." Sam looked out at the cold, dark, wet day. "You may see just a miserable day, and so do I. But the weather's all that's miserable."

"Don't try and talk me into getting up, mom. It won't work."

"I won't, but at least listen to me first, and then you can decide." She took a moment to compose herself. "It's true that the weather outside is terrible, but people are still going about their business all the same. We don't know the future for sure, so every day is loaded with possibility. You might get hurt, or you might not. You might have an argument with your friends, or you might meet the future love of your life. What happens today depends on what you put into it. Just because it's colder than you like it, or there's no sun doesn't mean that good things won't happen. It's up to you, honey." Sam felt her mother's weight leave the bed and she walked to the door. "Now I've said what I wanted. Whether or not you get up is up to you, dear." She walked out the room and closed the door.

Sam lay under the covers, staring out the window. Her bed felt like the safest, most comfortable place in the world. It's funny how the indoor always feels better on a day like this, she thought. Even the cold walls of the school feel cozy on cold, wet, gray days like this. Especially with Alex and Clover. Even the worst days are more tolerable when they're around. Clover's always oblivious to anything that doesn't directly involve her, and Alex always looks for the sunny side to everything, and I'm always the realistic moderator between the two. And then that little snot Mandy always has something against us. What is her deal?

Sam sat up in bed, still holding the covers tight around her. Maybe mom's right. Maybe today won't be so bad. It's just a little wind. And it's not too cold. It is just the weather, after all. No need to let it spoil my fun. There's plenty to do that doesn't require sunny skies and warm weather. She got out of bed, shivering from the cold air in the house. She put on a bathrobe and checked her calendar. One year, 42 days of junior high left.

Sam's senses slowly came back to her. She could tell she was lying on something soft, for starters. She let her consciousness return at it's own pace. She slowly grew aware of a constant, comforting sound nearby. It had an irregular rhythm, and the timbre constantly changed, never sounding quite the same from one second to the next. Yet the pattern was always the same, and it was very relaxing to listen to. She finally recognized the sound; rain.

She forced her eyes open. She felt extremely weak, and her eyelids had a hard time getting open and staying there. The world was blurry to her. All she could make out was the walls and ceiling at first, and then she saw the window next to the bed. Drops falling from the roof cast tiny shadows on the blinds, and eventually Sam could make out individual drops as her eyesight returned to her.

With great effort, she turned her head to look at the rest of the room. She lay in a small bed in a small bedroom. The room was sparsely furnished, with a dresser facing the door, and a bookshelf at the foot of the bed and a table beside the bed. The door opened into a hallway, where she could hear someone talking. The speech sounded incoherent and remote.

She started to smell something. It was faint at first, just at the tip of her nose. The scent got stronger and stronger, until she recognized the smell of bacon frying. The smell passed right through her nose and seemed to rush to her stomach, which growled in response.

Her head was still swimming, but Sam decided to try and get up anyway. She started to sit up, but her stomach knotted up and rivers of pain poured into her head. She fell back into the bed and squeezed her eyes shut as the pain rose and subsided. When she no longer felt that her head would explode, she felt the area where her stomach had tightened up so suddenly. She felt bandages under the shirt, and padding on the left side, just above the waist.

She left her hand there for a few minutes, trying to remember why she was bandaged. That's right, that guy shot me. The memories of the alley returned. Jacob and me were fighting for our lives with the thugs. And then one of them shot me. She remembered the sudden impact, followed by a searing pain that began in a small spot and then spread through her entire body from the inside. She remembered her senses fading one by one, until she lost consciousness. She remembered the darkness and stillness, thinking she was dead. It didn't register during the dream, because she thought she was just living out an old memory before passing into the great beyond.

With difficulty, she raised her hand out of the sheets and held it in front of her face. She stared at her soft, slender hand for a while, trying to collect her scattered thoughts.

So I'm alive after all. I didn't die in that filthy alley. She let her hand fall. You weren't meant for this kind of work, she asked her hand, so why are you involved with these people and why do you keep trying? Because it's the right thing to do, that's why.

Sam decided to try getting up again. The person down the hall was still talking, and now she could recognize it as being Russian or perhaps some other European dialect. Normally she would have been worried, but either she was too weak or just wasn't thinking right. She knew that just sitting up like usual would irritate her muscles again. She gingerly turned onto her side, every inch sending spikes of pain through her body and small waves of nausea through her head. When she finally rolled onto her side, she relaxed and focused, getting ready for the next move, which she knew would hurt like hell.

Sam placed her right hand on the bed and rotated her left shoulder to push herself off the bed. She took a deep breath and pushed. Just as her body started to leave the bed, her stomach sent shockwaves of pain through her whole body in protest. She clenched her teeth and kept pushing through the pain. After what seemed like an eternity, she was finally sitting upright at the edge of the bed. Her body decided that since she could deal with pain, it would resort to plan B. Wave after wave of nausea swept over her, sending the whole room spinning. She retched and wanted to vomit, but forced her body not to give in to that reflex.

Her arms were sore from the effort, and she was breathing heavily, perspiration forming on her head. A dull, persistent pain materialized at the wound and spread through her stomach. Part of her mind said, "Good job, you sat up! Now lie back down, you're still hurt bad. Don't torture yourself!" The other part of her mind said, "Where am I? Who took me here? Why am I not in a hospital? Who's here?" Her curious side won out.

She placed one hand on the table and the other on the bed, then planted both feet firmly on the floor. She leaned forward slightly and pushed off the bed with both hands and strained her legs to lift her up. She swayed forward and caught herself with the table and maintained her balance. Once again, the effort exhausted her, and she stood there for some time getting the feel for standing up again. Sam noticed she was barefoot.

At length, Sam eased one foot forward and took a step, keeping her hand on the table for balance. Her stomach still hurt and her head still swam, but she congratulated herself on remaining upright. She decided to try a full step. Placing most of her weight on the table, Sam lifted her back foot off the floor and carefully placed it in front. She settled her weight onto her feet again and placed her hand on the wall for support. This time the effort wasn't such a strain, and she let herself rest for just a few seconds before taking another step, and then another.

When she reached the door, she placed her hands on the frame and leaned out into the hallway. The hall ended just to the left at a bathroom, and then continued a short ways to the right and ended at a living room. Sam leaned out into the hallway and fell forward, stopping herself on the opposite wall. She flinched as a sharp jab of pain went through her, and she instinctively placed her right hand over the wound. When the pain subsided, she continued down the hall towards the place where she heard the voice. She found Jacob sitting at a table, talking on his cell phone, in Russian. He said a few final words when he saw her, and turned the phone off.   
"Hey, you're up! I was afraid I'd lost you for a while, there."

Sam remained at the entrance to the room. The hallway ended at a small living room with a couch and a few chairs arranged in front of a stereo. A bar separated the living room from the kitchen, and Jacob was seated at the table, sipping coffee.

"Where…where am I?"  
"We're at a friend's apartment."

"Wh…who is that?"

"He's less a friend than someone we can trust. He's a medical student."

Sam groaned as another wave of nausea took her. She held her head in her hand and shut her eyes against the spinning sensation. When she opened them after the nausea passed, she noticed she wasn't wearing the same shirt she was wearing earlier.

"This isn't my shirt."

Jacob looked up from the magazine he was reading. "Hmm?"

"This isn't my shirt."

"Oh yeah, sorry about that. Yours was soaked in blood."

"What?"

"It's soaked in blood. I don't think you want it back."

Sam stared down at the shirt she was wearing, and then finally connected the dots. "You took of my blouse?"

"Well I didn't, but our friend had to. You had been shot, after all."

"You took off my blouse."

"You were bleeding everywhere. We were lucky your pants came out of the wash just fine."

"You took off my blouse!"

"You're really lucky, you know. If you weighed just a few pounds more, the bullet might not have passed through you so cleanly."

Sam was yelling now. "You. Took. Off. My. Blouse!"

Jacob set his mug down and stared at her. "Yes! We had to strip you! Not all the way, but it was necessary or else my friend wouldn't have been able to save your life! Now please calm down, as I'm sure your blood pressure's still low and-"

Jacob bolted from the chair as Sam fainted. He caught her and propped her up on the couch. A few seconds later she regained consciousness, but she still looked furious through her half-opened eyes.

"Why…why didn't you take me to a hospital?" She sounded weak again.

Jacob sat down in one of the chairs. "Picture this: A twenty-year-old male walks in carrying a gunshot seventeen-year-old female. Naturally, the police are going to start asking some really awkward questions which I frankly cannot answer."

Sam looked around again. "Where are we?"

"At the apartment of a guy we can trust. He's a medical student at a charity hospital not far from here."

"Where is he?"

"On duty right now. I'm hoping we can be gone before he gets back, but that depends on you."

Sam sighed and placed her hand over her wound. "What happened after I blacked out today?"

Jacob smiled a little. "First off, that was yesterday."

"What?"

"You've been asleep for a day and a half."

"Really?"

Jacob nodded. "After you passed out, I realized where we were, and remembered that an old acquaintance of mine lived close by. I raced over here as fast as I could and practically kicked his door in."

"I almost died, didn't I?"

Jacob's smile vanished. "Yeah, almost. We were afraid you'd bleed to death, but we got it under control in time."

Sam remembered the last thing she saw before she blacked out. "I remember something, just before I passed out. I saw you next to me."

"Yeah, I was there just before you went out."

"You looked…scared. Why would you of all people be scared?"

Jacob got up from the chair and walked over to the window. He leaned on the sill and stared at the rain for a little. "Yeah, I was scared. I don't show it too often, but that time I did."

"Why on earth would you be so scared about me dying? Aren't you supposed to be a born killer?" Sam didn't realize she had just let the secret slip.

"I don't know, Sam. Maybe I was just reliving a bad memory, or maybe my guilt about dragging you and your friends into this mess was catching up to me, but I was scared."

"What do you mean?"

Jacob paused. Sam saw a painful expression cross his face. Apparently whatever happened to him was really bad. "When I was your age, I lost someone really important to me. She literally died right in my arms."

"Who was she? Your mother?"

"No. She was more like an older sister than anything. Her death was so sudden, I just lost it. I guess that's where my intolerance towards criminals came from."

They were silent for a few minutes. Sam asked him another question. "Why would you be guilty about dragging us into this? Even I don't have any regrets."

"You don't? Even after almost getting killed?"

"Yeah. It's weird. I almost died, I feel terrible, and yet I still want to keep going. There's still so much left to do. We're doing this because we want to. Why should you feel bad? It's not your fault."

Jacob smiled at Sam. "You're very brave, you know that?"

"I get that sometimes."

"The truth is, I felt guilty because you're so young. When I saw the life leaving your eyes, something inside me changed. I didn't see a fellow operative, I saw a young girl with so much of her life left to live bleeding out of her."

"You're not very old, either. Didn't you say you were only twenty?"

"Yeah, but with me it's different. You three ought to be out going to parties, dating guys, hanging out, and just enjoying your lives. There's no need for you to get mixed up in this game."

"You're wrong. We have every right to get involved in this. We're not ordinary teenagers. We spend our free time protecting the world from some of the worst criminals ever seen. Who are you to tell us we can't get involved when someone threatens our home?"

"Just a friend, I guess."

"Friend?" Sam's strength was returning with each passing minute. "I thought we were just 'partners.'"

"What?"

"Outside the lab, remember? You called us your partners."

"Yeah, I know. I guess I was just caught up in the battle. All I could see were my enemies in front of me. Everything else was inconsequential."

Sam's stomach growled loud enough for Jacob to hear it. "You must be hungry!"

"No kidding, I haven't eaten in over a day, like you said." She started to get up. Jacob walked over and helped her into the kitchen. He opened the oven and removed a plate covered in aluminum foil. He removed the foil and set down a plate with bacon, eggs, and a white substance Sam had never seen before.

"What's that stuff?"

"Grits. They're popular in the Southeast. Nobody really eats them anywhere else."

Normally, such a breakfast wouldn't have been Sam's first choice. Normally, she would have seen a pile of cholesterol and carbohydrates, but she took one whiff of the food and found herself ravenous. While she dove into the food, Jacob set a glass of orange juice on the table. "Eat up, you're going to need plenty of carbs and protein to get yourself back up to speed."

"Let me guess," she said between bites, "no rest for the weary?"

"Nope."

"Do you think they'll sideline me for this?"

"Possibly. Depends on what Jerry thinks and how fast you recover."

"What does Jerry have to do with it? Isn't MacDonald in control of this mission?"

"Partially. He comes up with the plans and Jerry finalizes and ok's them."

Sam thought about what that meant. "Then, Jerry knew you were going to destroy that lab."

"You three were probably the only ones who didn't know."

He was about to apologize, but Sam silenced him with a gesture. "Don't say you're sorry, it won't do any good. We've been over this. It's obvious you're always going to do things differently than us, so don't even bother pretending that you could!"

"You're thinking it's because I have a killer instinct, right?"

Sam stopped. "How did you guess?"

"I know everything Stephen told you in the park, and so does Jerry."

"You followed us?"

"Bugged, yes. Followed? No. We were smarter than to go against his instructions."

"You knew about the letter. How?"  
"Think about it, Sam. WOOHP has a lot of secrets to keep. Everything that goes in or out of the building is carefully examined. Naturally, a handwritten letter from the terrorist is going to raise a few red flags."

"So you two let it get sent to our room."

"It turns out that Stephen had paid a cleaning lady to put it in your room. We found out, but decided it might be better to see what happens. We let her plant it, and then left those gadgets in the office."

"You knew we'd search around in there."  
Jacob nodded. "That beret broadcasted not only to the earbuds, but also to a shortwave receiver outside the park."

"Then you heard the whole conversation."

"We also bugged your clothes for good measure."

"And Jerry was in on the whole thing?"

"It was his idea."

Sam stared at Jacob, and he stared back. She saw more webs appearing over the whole situation. Now Jerry of all people had gone behind their backs. Jerry's never done anything like that. He's always honest with us. Sam finished her breakfast in silence, and pushed the plate away. Jacob took it to the sink. She folded her hands together on the table and tried to sort the lies from the facts. Not the facts, she thought, the truths.

"Something wrong?" Jacob asked.

"Not really. No, there is something wrong. Jerry's never been one to keep things from us. I'm sure he has things he never tells anyone, but when it comes to the missions he's always open with us. It's not like him to be secretive." She paused to reflect on those words, and then she looked at Jacob and realized something. "It's because of you, isn't it?"

Jacob was silent, but his face betrayed the fact that she'd hit the mark.

"I knew it. This whole mission, we've been teamed up with you. And the whole time, everyone was reluctant to tell us about you, your past, Stephen, and your connection with him. I don't know why I missed it! I knew there was something different about this mission, and the whole time it was you!"

Jacob lowered his eyes. "Congratulations, you win the prize."

"Prize?"

"The truth."

Sam could feel her temper rising, but calmed herself, knowing that this was not a good time to faint. "Who are you?" she asked coolly. "Tell me the truth."

"You want the truth? Okay, listen up." Jacob leaned back in his chair and folded his arms. His eyes darkened as he recalled his past. "My name is Jacob Ravask. I was born in St. Petersburg, Russia, into a family that heads one of the largest crime syndicates in the country. They were careful to keep me out of their affairs, preferring that I remain oblivious to their deeds."

"When I was about eight, I started to become aware of their activities. At first, I thought nothing of it. I had been raised not to. Heck, I even played a small part in a few of their activities. When I was ten, I met the oldest son of a missionary working in St. Petersburg. He was in his late teens, and very intelligent. The short version is he opened my eyes to the foul nature of my family's business. I went to confront them about it, and I was horrified at how calloused their hearts were. They just laughed at me when I said what they were doing was wrong. It was then that I learned of the experiment, and that I was its product. When I learned about the experiment, I couldn't stand being in their household another minute. I grabbed a few clothes and ran straight to the police."

"And that's where the CIA found you." Said Sam.

"Yeah. It turns out they've been keeping an eye on my family for some time, and still are. They decided I was too valuable to leave in the country or something, so they brought be over here and set me up with a foster family."

"But that still doesn't explain how you came to work for the government at such a young age."

"My freedom came with a string. If I ever leaked what I knew, even accidentally, I belonged to the US government."

"So you slipped up, didn't you?"

"Yeah. I'm not even sure how it happened. Just a slip of the tongue, really. All that mattered was the next morning some people in suits showed up and I've been with the government ever since."

"Is that all, or are you still withholding part of the story?"

"That's all that matters."

"Stop lying to me! I'm sick of all the lies! I'm sick of all this secrecy!"

"Get used to it, kid. This business is all about keeping and stealing secrets."

"What do you mean, 'get used to it?'"

Jacob started to become menacing again, like someone who knew a simple fact that could turn someone's world upside down. "WOOHP operates as a humanitarian foundation just on the surface. Most of the world doesn't know about WOOHP - the developer of next-generation technology and worldwide crime fighting network."

"Yeah, I knew that. So?"

"Organizations with secrets to keep tend to prefer keeping them. When someone knows something extremely sensitive, the organization tends to keep them on a short leash."

Sam saw where this was going.

"Who's to say that as soon as you graduate, you won't be forced to work for WOOHP for the rest of your life?"

"Jerry wouldn't do that. I know he wouldn't. There's just no way."

"I'd say the only thing protecting you three is your age. As long as you're minors, the government can't really touch you."

"And that didn't apply to you somehow?"

"I made a deal with Uncle Sam and blew it. I'm just paying the penalty."

They didn't look at each other for a while after that. Sam didn't like the direction the conversation was taking. Jacob was finally opening up, and now she was making him clam up again. Eventually, she spoke up. "So what do we do now? We didn't get the bomb's location. Does this mean it's all over?"

Jacob looked at her. "Not by a long shot. He hasn't set it off yet, so that means we still have a chance, which means I'm not giving up."

"If you're not giving up, then neither am I."

"That's the spirit."

Sam listened to the rain for a little while. "Are you going to kill Stephen?"

Jacob sighed. "A couple of days ago, I wouldn't have hesitated to say yes. But I'm not so sure anymore."

"What? Why is that?"

"Like I said, when I saw you bleeding to death, something inside me changed. I…didn't want you to suffer the same fate as I have."

Sam looked at him, his eyes full of remorse. "You never got to be just a teenager, did you? When did you say they took you away?"

"When I was fourteen."

"Then you never got to be just a kid. You always worked for the government."

"In a nutshell, yes."

Sam looked out the window. The rain still fell steadily. "If you're not going to kill Stephen, what are you going to do?"

"I don't know."

"You don't know?"

"No. Like I said, I'm not sure what I'm going to do. I guess I'll figure it out by then."

"If you're not sure about killing him, then what all the other bad guys in the world?"

"I don't know."

"Why?"

"I just don't feel like killing anymore, Sam. I wish I could communicate how I felt yesterday. Maybe then you'd understand what I'm going through."

"A born killer who doesn't want to kill anymore. How ironic." Sam played with her empty glass. "The question remains, what will you do when you meet Stephen?"

"I guess I will kill him, or at least try to. It's going to be him or me. He's dedicated to nuking the city, and I'm sworn to stop him via any means."

"So nothing's changed after all."

Jacob got up and started pacing around the living room. He stopped in front of the window. Sam waited for him to say something, and when he didn't, she started. "Do you enjoy what you do?"

"What?"

"Do you enjoy doing the things your job requires, or is it just a matter of duty?"

"I won't lie to you. When I'm in the heat of battle, I do get a strange sort of pleasure out of it, like that's what I was meant to do."

"So you enjoy killing people?"

He sighed again and leaned on the bar. "Sam, no one ever has the right to take the life of another. Ever. But sometimes, we just don't have any other choice." Jacob decided to change the subject. "How did you get involved with WOOHP, anyway?"

"My friends and I entered a contest for a new dream house. We sort of forgot to read the fine print, and wound up signing the next few years of our lives into service with WOOHP."

"Heh, that sounds familiar."

"Other than that, I've led a pretty normal life. Chasing boys, having fun, doing homework, nothing like what you've spent your teenage years doing."

"Good, keep it that way."

"Huh?"

"Don't be like me and get totally absorbed in your work with WOOHP. Keep being a kid and enjoy your youth. I don't know what the future between you and WOOHP holds, but for now, just keep having fun."

"Sounds like good advice from a guy who's been there."

"You might say that."

"You said you lost a woman who was important to you when you were my age. What happened?"

"I literally can't tell you. It's classified."

"I see. Your whole life is just one big classified file, isn't it?"

"I know. I should have been named Manilla."

Sam and Jacob shared a chuckle.

"You feeling better, Sam?"

"Yeah, lots. Your friend did a good job. Too bad I can't meet him and thank him."

"That'll just have to be, I suppose."

"Tell me, is your whole family as bad as Stephen?"

"Not all of them. It's a pretty big family, so it's hard to keep track of them all. I do know for a fact that one of my cousins became a nun to get away from them."

"Really? That's a pretty extreme measure to take."

"Only way she could go."

"But if she's a nun, won't she be easy to track down?"

"It may sound crazy, but most of my family is strongly Russian Orthodox. They'd never harm the church."

"You're right, that is crazy."

"Isn't it, though? The important thing is that she's safe, so I'm not worried."

"Speaking of safe, what are we going to do about the bomb?"

Jacob was silent, and then said, "I don't know."

Sam laid her head on the table. "Great, I guess we are doomed. All our efforts for nothing." She felt that Stephen really was unstoppable now that they'd lost their one chance to stop him.

Jacob placed a hand on her shoulder. She looked up and saw him kneeling next to her. "Sam, this isn't over. Until this mission ends one way or the other, you and me and Alex and Clover and Jerry and everyone else involved in this operation are going to do everything in our power to stop Stephen."

She placed her hand on his. "Thanks, I needed that."

He smiled. "You're welcome." He stood back up and paced back to the window. "Besides, I don't think he's going to set it off yet."

"Why is that?"

"You heard it straight from his mouth, remember?"

Sam recalled her meeting with Stephen. "That's right, he wanted to fight you one last time before he detonated the bomb. That means…we still have time!"

"Yeah, but we still don't know where he put it. That's the real problem."

Sam crossed her arms and thought. "Well, Ramirez said it was on the roof of a building, so that means it'll need an accessible rooftop."

"That'll narrow down our search somewhat, but it still leaves a lot of ground to cover."

Sam tried to think, but the effort only made her thoughts scatter and she started getting a headache. "Ow."

"What's the matter?"

"Headache."

"Your blood pressure's still low. Drink lots of water today."

Jacob looked out the window. The rain was dwindling. "How are you feeling? Good enough to leave?"

She stood up to test her strength. Her side still hurt as she moved, but the nausea was gone and she had regained most of her coordination. "Yeah, I think so."

"Good. Get dressed while I call for a ride."

"We going back to WOOHP?"

"MacDonald wants me to report to the FBI district office here. I might as well bring you along."

"Why does he want you to go there?"

"Not sure, but it's not my place to ask."

"How typical. Would you throw yourself off the Hoover Dam if they ordered you to?"

"Been there, done that."

They laughed together, and then a spike of pain cut Sam's laughter short. She went back into the bedroom to dress while Jacob called for a ride.


	10. Chapter Ten

Chapter Ten

Sam and Jacob waited outside of the apartment building for their ride to the FBI headquarters. The rain had completely stopped a few minutes ago, so everything was still dripping from the shower. The sky was still gray. Sam wore her jacket and pants with the cheap shirt Jacob's friend had loaned them. All it took was one look at her blood-soaked blouse to make her accept the offer. She took another swig from the water bottle.

"Feeling anything?" Jacob asked.

"My side still hurts, but the nausea's gone."

"It'll take a few weeks to completely recover from that gunshot, so try to avoid irritating it until then."

"Will there be a scar?"

Jacob pursed his lips. "I'm not sure. He said it was a clean wound, and he patched it up good, so it should be minimal. Then again, I've had worse wounds leave no scars, and lesser ones leave some."

"Great." Sam didn't like the idea of having a permanent reminder on her body of this incident, and she sure as heck didn't like the idea of explaining it to her parents. Or anyone at school for that matter.

She looked down the road and saw a sedan slowing down as it approached the apartments. "Is that our ride?"

Jacob looked at it closely. "Yeah, I think so." Sam took another swig from her bottle.

The car slowed to a halt in front of them. A man in his mid-thirties stepped out of the driver's seat and walked around to them.

"Mr. Ravask, Miss Simpson?"

"That's us."

"Agent Elsing. I've been sent to drive you to the FBI headquarters, sir."

"Let's go, then."

Sam and Jacob got into the back seat and they started down the rain-soaked street. The car went down the road a few blocks before merging onto the highway and they headed back downtown. The roads were still wet, causing the cars to kick up a trail of mist behind them as they all went on their busy ways. Sam found it curious that all these people were totally oblivious of the danger they were in.

"Hey Elsing," said Jacob. "Any idea why they want me at the FBI?"

"No idea, sir. All I know is that I was taking a coffee break when my boss told me to go get you."

"Thank you, agent."

"Sir, if I may ask, why is she coming with us?"

"She's been injured. I thought it best she come with me before returning to WOOHP."

"Oh, I see."

They drove in silence for several minutes. Sam stared out the window at the approaching skyscrapers. One of those buildings is hiding the bomb, but which one? She looked across at Jacob as she tried to think. Jacob was also staring out his window, but she couldn't see his face. He looked like he was thinking about something.

"What are you thinking about?" she asked.

"Nothing in particular."

"At a time like this?"

He stretched his arms. "I've been going like a machine for the past week. I'm going to take any downtime I can get."

A thought crossed her mind. "After you had me stabilized, did you call Jerry or anyone?"

"Yeah, I did. He thought it best we lay low after a screw-up like that. We were still in Ramirez's territory after all."

Sam recalled the pitiful conditions of the buildings in that area. "Hard to believe such nice people choose to keep living there."

"Well, if they moved away, then there won't be any nice people left, right?"

"That's one way of putting it."

The highway snaked around the mass of buildings at the heart of the city. Sam could see the WOOHP building, grayed by the mist still hanging in the air. The car left the highway and descended into the maze of monolithic structures.

"You know, you're a pretty nice guy under all that military toughness."

Jacob looked at her quizzically. "You think so?"

"Of course. We just don't get much of a chance to see it because we've been so occupied with the mission."

Jacob snorted. "Well, that description certainly goes against my name."

"What?"

"You know how names have meanings?"  
"Yeah."

"In Hebrew, Jacob means 'He grasps by the heel.' It's the name for a sneak and a cheater."

"Oh, come on. You're just trying to keep me at arm's length."

"I'm serious! The Hebrew patriarch Jacob was born grasping his twin brother Esau's ankle. Jacob would go on to trick Esau into selling his birthright for a bowl of stew and tricking their father into giving him the blessing."

"Really? That's pretty wild. What did Esau do?"

"He threatened to kill Jacob, so Jacob ran for his life. When he returned years later with a family in tow, he was terrified of what Esau might do."

"What did he do?"

"He ran out of the camp with tears in his eyes and gave his brother a big hug."

"Crazy family."

"Almost as bad as mine."

They laughed a little. "Now that I think of it, the name does suit you. You act like a tough guy, but you're just a big softie on the inside!"

"Har har, very funny."

The car stopped in front of a building. "Here we are, sir," said Elsing.

They both said, "thanks," and stepped out. The car drove away to the garage and Sam took another swig.

"Shall we go in?" asked Jacob.

"Not like I have anything better to do, besides finding you-know-who."

They entered the building lobby. Jacob and Sam handed their weapons over to the security guards and retrieved them after stepping through the metal detector. The lobby consisted of a hallway lined with columns on either side, and a cafeteria and waiting rooms were on either side of the corridor. A pair of men in suits stood at the end of the lobby in front of the elevators as though expecting them.

"I think that's the director on the right," Jacob whispered to Sam.

"Who's the other guy?"  
"No idea. Never seen him before."

They were halfway to the elevators when Sam spotted movement off to her right. She was about to say something when eight SWAT members stepped out of their hiding places on either side and aimed their submachine guns at them, and the leader yelled "Freeze!" Sam and Jacob stopped. "Place your weapons slowly on the ground and put your hands in the air!"

"What's going on?" asked Sam.

"Not sure, but do what they say!"

They placed their guns on the floor and kicked them across the marble floor before raising their hands up. The SWAT team stepped into the corridor and formed a circle around them, their guns always pointed at the two of them.

Jacob looked around and then at the director. "Am I in trouble again? Usually I only need three guards, so did I do something really bad this time?"

The director said nothing, but the man next to him spoke up. "By order of the Secretary of Defense, you are hereby placed under arrest until Operation Shooting Star is resolved." He turned to Sam. "As an accomplice, you will be placed under arrest as well."

"What the hell is going on!?" said Jacob.

The man didn't smile, but the look on his face said that he was enjoying this. "You heard me. The Secretary of Defense has placed you both under arrest."

"What for?" asked Sam.

"He has decided that agent Jacob and the WOOHP operatives have endangered this operation enough. Your little SNAFU at the museum was the last straw."

"But that wasn't our fault! The FBI-"

"Was conducting a simple sting operation to apprehend a major criminal figure." The man's slick voice and calm demeanor were grinding on Sam's nerves. It was all she could do not to clobber him right there.

Jacob looked at him closely. "Now I remember you. You're the one who tried to get rid of me after –" he remembered that Sam was standing there along with eight unauthorized personnel – "'The incident.'"

"Yes, and now I work for the Secretary of Defense. Funny how things work out."

"Where is he?"

"He's a very busy man, and couldn't be here personally. He sends his apologies."

Sam looked around in confusion. The director looked powerless against this man from the White House. She looked around at the guards. They were all focused and trained their weapons on them. Then Sam noticed none of them were looking at her. They were all focused on Jacob, and so were their guns.

Sam protested. "Wait, I thought Jerry and MacDonald had control of this operation!"

"Not anymore, they don't. MacDonald has been placed under house arrest, and Jerry would be wise not to leave his building."

"What? You're lying!" Jacob tried to motion her to be quiet.

"I assure you, I'm not lying. Why don't you call MacDonald and see? I think his line's still open."

Sam opened her Compowder and called MacDonald. The screen showed a stressed-out old man in a uniform.

"MacDonald, what's going on?"

"As you can already guess, the Secretary of Defense has assumed operational control of this mission. I am no longer in control of the operation."

Jacob leaned close so he could see. "MacDonald, since when?"

"Since about noon yesterday. After you two disappeared, someone must have assumed the situation has been leaked somehow. The Secretary decided to take a worst-case scenario approach and took control. When you contacted the FBI, he decided to place you under arrest."

"Well that's just great!"

Sam looked up at the man from the White House. "How could you do this? The museum incident wasn't even our fault!"

"True, but the fact that there was a gunfight right in the city over this matter is. If the police found you, you would have been captured and questioned. You know we can't even let the police know!"

"And what about the FBI?" asked Jacob.

"You were not to contact anyone outside of WOOHP or the Department of Defense. That little deal you and Jerry made is a blatant and dangerous breach of protocol." He faced Sam. "And you! You accepted an invitation to meet the terrorist alone and unarmed? You're worse than he is! You had a chance to apprehend him and never took it! That alone is treasonous behavior!" Sam desperately fought the urge to strike him. She was a lot of things, but a traitor definitely wasn't one of them. "I've said enough on this matter. Take them away."

Jacob held out his hands for the SWAT team to cuff him, and Sam did the same. She looked to him for some sort of encouragement, but he avoided her eyes and stared straight at the White House man.

"This is a big mistake, Carl. We're very close to discovering the bomb's location and finding the terrorist. You're placing both the operation and this city in jeopardy. And you know how far-reaching the effects of a nuclear attack will be."

Carl turned around and looked at Jacob smugly. "I'm well aware of the consequences. If you'll excuse me, I have a job to do, and you have a cell waiting for you on the fourteenth floor." With that, he boarded an elevator and was gone.

As the guards escorted them to the elevator, they passed the FBI director. He looked at them and said, "I'm sorry" before walking away.

Two of the guards followed them into the elevator and stood behind them. The one behind Jacob pushed the muzzle of his gun into Jacob's back and said, "You! Press the button! Fourteenth floor!"

Jacob complied and pressed the button. The guards relaxed their weapons and watched the floor indicator. Sam knew this elevator would be fast, and she looked around for an escape route. Her eyes found Jacob's. His eyes said, "wanna bust out?" and hers replied, "you bet."

Jacob took a deep breath, and with one fluid motion turned around, snatched the gun out of the guard's hands, and then did a second revolution and smashed the butt into the guard's head and slammed him against the wall. The second guard started to move, but froze when he saw Jacob pointing the gun right at him with his finger on the trigger. He still had the unconscious guard pinned against the wall with his elbow and he was holding the gun upside-down.

"Alright, buddy. Let's not-" Sam cut him off with a vicious foot to the jaw. Jacob hit the emergency stop button and searched the guards for the cuff keys.

"Now what?" she asked after unlocking his handcuffs.

"We're on the thirteenth floor. Guards are waiting for us on the fourteenth." He unlocked her handcuffs.

"So we climb up?"

"At least to the fifteenth, and then hopefully take the stairs down to the basement garage."

"Sounds like our chances are slim as ever." She grinned. "Let's go!"

Jacob removed the grating above them and opened the emergency hatch. He cupped his hands to give Sam a boost out of the elevator. As soon as she placed her hands on the edge of the hatch, a pair of hands reached down and pulled her up.

"Sam!"

He heard her say, "Jerry!"

Jacob looked up and saw Jerry and another agent standing over the hatch. "Well, it seems I'm right on time. I hope you two were comfortable."

"Jerry! What are you doing here?"

"I heard they were going to arrest you when you got here, so I decided to pay a little unannounced visit. Are you coming along?"

"No, I'd rather stay right here and let them arrest me. Of course I'm coming you old coot!"

The other agent reached down and helped Jacob out of the elevator. He, Jerry, and now Sam were attached to the elevator cables via tethers and a device that clamped onto the cable. Jerry handed one to Jacob and he attached it to a cable.

"Shall we take our leave of this place?" Jerry asked.

"Let's get out of here." Said Sam.

"Ladies first."

Sam pressed a button on the clamp and she began rising up the shaft.

"Up you go, Jacob."

"Age before beauty, Jerry."

"Righto!" Jerry ascended the shaft.

Jacob nodded to the agent, and they both started up. As they ascended the shaft, Jacob heard the elevator door open followed by a volley of angry curses.

Sam reached the top first. A pair of WOOHP agents stood by the open door and helped her out of the shaft. Another agent immediately took her by the arm and told her to follow him. They hurried down the hallway towards the stairs. Sam looked back to see Jerry climbing out of the shaft, and also noticed the other elevators had been sealed shut.

The agent led her to the stairwell, and they started going up. Sam could hear the sound of people running up the stairs from far below.

"Please hurry Miss Sam," said the agent.

Sam picked up the pace and felt her side hurting again. She ignored it and hurried up the stairs. The stairs ended at a heavy steel door, which the agent opened and led her onto the roof. A WOOHP helicopter was waiting with the blades spinning and a couple of agents scattered around the rooftop. He led her onto the helicopter and then returned to the door. Sam sat in one of the rigid seats and watched the door. Soon Jacob and Jerry emerged, followed by other WOOHP agents. An agent sealed the door behind them and they all boarded the helicopter. Jerry signaled the pilot to take off, and the engines revved up and the blades sped up until the helicopter gently lifted off the FBI roof and banked for the WOOHP headquarters.

Sam jumped on Jerry and gave him a squeeze. "You came! You came! You're the greatest, Jerr!"

Jerry rolled his eyes and pried her off. He straightened his tie and said, "You're both lucky the FBI director and I are on such good terms. Without him, you'd be sitting in a cell."

"And without him, we would never have had that chance with Ramirez," Jacob added.

"It's unfortunate that things have gone this way, but that's not stopping us from doing our jobs."

"What are we going to do now?" asked Sam.

"Let's leave that for when we get back. You need medical attention and Jacob needs to rest and all of us need to come up with a plan."

"Sounds like a plan to me." Sam reclined as best she could in the stiff seat, and decided to deal with their current problems later, when she had time to think straight.

WOOHP Cafeteria – 6:00 pm

Sam hobbled into the cafeteria to find Alex and Clover sitting at a table. The doctor had given her wounds a more proper treatment, but had irritated them as well, causing considerable discomfort. The girls saw her at the doorway and leaped from their seats.

"Sammie!"

They raced over to her and crushed her in their embrace. Sam's wounds sent shockwaves through her, and she told them through her teeth to let go.

"What's wrong, Sammie?" asked Alex.

"I'm still hurt. Ow, that was unpleasant."

"Oops! I'm so sorry!"

"It's okay. It's not serious. Not anymore."

Clover looked her over, noticing the bad shirt. "What happened?"

Sam noticed a bandage wrapped around Clover's right arm. "I got shot," she said plainly.

"Yeah, we heard. Was it serious?"

"Jacob said I almost bled to death, but I'm a lot better now."

Alex took her by the arm. "Come on and sit down, we just finished dinner, I'm afraid."

"That's okay, I'm not hungry."

They sat down at the table and Alex went to get some drinks.

Sam looked at Clover's bandage. "What happened there?"

"Stray bullet grazed my arm. It's not bad. I hope it doesn't scar."

"Me either."

"So tell me, why on earth is the government against us all of a sudden? Weren't we just working for them?"

"Apparently, they think we've screwed the whole thing up and decided to take over."

Alex returned with some lemonade for Sam. "Those idiots up there are going to get us all killed! We were doing just fine until we got the government involved!"

"That was our mistake." The girls turned around to see Jacob walking towards them. "Carl was right about one thing, we did go out of line by involving the Department of Justice."

Clover leaned across the table. "But that doesn't mean he can just shut us down when we're so close!"

"That's his problem now. We, on the other hand, are going to keep going."

"But Jerry said they don't want WOOHP involved anymore." Said Alex. "What does that mean?"

"I guess it makes us vigilantes!"

Alex sat back in her chair. "Wait, don't the cops usually like, hate vigilantes?"

"Always, Clover. Always."

Sam took a big gulp from her lemonade. "So this means we're now a bunch of renegades?"

"Exactly."

"Which means we'd better hurry before the Secretary of Defense figures out what's going on."

They turned and saw Jerry walking over. "Everything's still in chaos over there, and I've implemented measures to make sure it stays that way for some time."

"Jerry!" the girls chimed in unison.

"So you've bought us some time?" asked Sam.

"Yes. I don't know how much, but if it's only enough to let you get some beauty rest, then it'll just have to do."

"What if they try to come here and arrest us?" asked Alex.

Jerry smirked "I'll turn myself in if they manage to get past the first floor."

"Is that a bet?" asked Jacob.

"Never underestimate the power of red tape."

They all laughed, except for Clover, who didn't quite get it.

Sam finished her lemonade. "So what's the plan now, Jerr?"

"Now, we're all going to get some rest. Even you look like fifty kilometers of bad road, Jacob."

"I'm just fatigued. I'll sleep it off."

"We'll devise a strategy first thing tomorrow. I suggest you all turn in early tonight. Good evening, ladies!"

"Bye!" The waved as he left.

Clover turned to Jacob. "So, what's gonna happen from here?"

"I can't say. Don't expect this to get any easier. We still don't know Stephen's whereabouts or that of the bomb, so that'll probably be the first order of business."

"You know it's funny," said Alex, "in the blink of an eye we've gone from the free world's best chance to a bunch of renegades."

Clover sighed. "Man, why can't things stay simple? I'm good at being the heroine, but I can't be the villain as well!"

"Just think of yourself as an anti-hero," said Sam.

Clover pouted. "But I don't wanna be anti-anything!"

Alex patted her on the back. "Don't worry, it'll all turn out for the better, right, Jacob?"

Jacob hesitated. "I can't say yes and I can't say no, Alex. There's just too many variables right now." He got up and stretched. "Well, I'm going to turn in."

"Already?" They asked.

"I've been awake for over forty-eight hours taking care of your friend, here. I'm going to bed." With that he left the cafeteria.

After he left, Clover leaned across the table towards Sam. "So, did you get his number?"

"Clover!"


	11. Chapter Eleven

Chapter Eleven

Jerry's Office – 8:00 am

Jerry stood up. "Let's get this meeting started, shall we?"

The girls agreed, and so did Jacob. MacDonald appeared on the monitor. "Sorry I'm late. It's hard getting a secure line set up when you're under house arrest." He wasn't wearing his uniform today.

"Quite alright, we've got plenty of time."

"I certainly hope so, Jerry."

"The first order of business should be to assess our current situation, so let's start with that. Girls, what's the situation from your point of view?"

They conferred with each other for a minute, and then Sam spoke for them.

"Well, Stephen still has the bomb, we don't know where him or it are, Ramirez is probably hiding, gone, or dead, and the Secretary of Defense has taken over the operation and wants to arrest all of us, so there's not much we can do."

"A good analysis, Sam, but you do have a couple of things wrong."

"And what would that be?"

Jacob sat up. "First off, we're not powerless. We still have all of WOOHP's resources at our disposal."

"So that means we can still fight!" exclaimed Clover.

"Yes, but this time without any official support, right MacDonald?"

"Correct. Anything you or WOOHP does from here on out is an independent action."

"That means the DoD won't be easy on us if they catch us, huh?" said Sam.

"I'm afraid so. I know these guys all too well. They don't play around."

"And neither do we." said Alex.

Clover was sitting next to Jacob. She thought he looked a bit pale. She leaned over and whispered, "Hey, did you not sleep well?"

"I slept well enough. Why?"

"You look a little pale."

"It's nothing, I'm just tired."

"If you say so."

"Now then," Jerry continued, "since we are no longer partnered with the NSA, WOOHP will be in full command of this mission from here on out."

"Really?" asked the girls.

"Yes. We're acting independently, remember?"

"Which means," Jacob added, "You'll be back to using WOOHP-issued equipment."

"All right!" exclaimed Clover. "No offense, Jacob, but that stuff you gave us was so non-chique I wanted to just cry."

"None taken. I'll stick to my guns, you stick to yours."

"Coming from you, that's not very reassuring."

"Heh, guess not."

Jerry cleared his throat. "Are there any other questions?"

"Yeah, I have one." Said Sam. "From what I understand, nuclear materials take a long time to process, since even brief exposure to plutonium can be fatal. Given the transit time between Russia and Los Angeles, it would have taken several hours for the warhead to arrive."

"What are you getting at, Sam?" asked Alex.

"I'm getting to it." She turned back to Jerry. "I spent some time last night reading the mission report. According to Jacob's report, Stephen's package left the warehouse we searched just a few hours before we arrived. Now, when did you find out the bomb was gone before you called us?"

"About ten hours before."

"See, that's what's not adding up. It takes about a day's worth of travel to get a package from Russia to here. There's no way the warhead could have gone that fast if he was using conventional means of transportation, which we know he was."

Jacob sat up and paid close attention to her. MacDonald looked uneasy. Jerry was calm as ever. Clover and Alex did their best to keep up with her.

"Now, another thing is, when Jacob found the machining equipment at the lab, he said it looked like it hadn't been used for some time. If I'm not mistaken, you take your time when dealing with substances like weapons-grade Uranium and Plutonium."

"What are you saying, Sam?" asked Jerry.

"That we've been lied to again. I think someone in this room knew about this crisis longer than the rest of us."

The girls looked at Jerry, but he showed no signs of discomfort. "Well this is news to me, girls. I know as much as you."

They looked at Jacob, but he was scowling at MacDonald's image and sitting at the edge of his seat. "Well, how about it Jeff?"

MacDonald sighed. "It's true, we knew about the theft of the nuclear weapon a good twenty-four hours prior to the initiation of Operation Shooting Star."

"What!?" the girls exclaimed.

"We were informed by the Russian government about three hours after the theft."

Jacob stood up. "Three hours? It wouldn't have left the country by then!"

"At the time, it was still their problem, so there was nothing we could do about it until it was in US territory."

Alex was furious. "So you sat on the issue until it was too late? Is that it?"

MacDonald sighed. "International crises like this are very delicate situations. Make a wrong move and you might be at war with someone."

"That's no excuse! Couldn't you have just checked all the planes from Russia when they arrived in the US?"

"If Stephen wanted to get caught, then that's what he would have done. Unfortunately, he routed the package through a Chinese airline, which we didn't discover until it was too late."

The room was silent for a while after that. The girls talked to each other in hushed whispers. Jacob's eyes never left the screen. "Anything else you'd like to tell us, Jeff? Or is there another detail you'd like to fill us in on?"

"I'm sorry Jacob, but that's all I can say."

"Because that's all you know or all you're allowed to say?"

MacDonald hesitated to answer. "That's everything I know."

Jacob sat down. Sam turned to him and asked, "Is this what they call a "need to know" basis?"

"Textbook example."

Jerry broke in. "I know this history lesson is fascinating, but we have more important matters to deal with now."

"Yeah," said Sam, "Like how do we track down Stephen now? He's got the drop on us once again."

"Indeed. I'll keep WOOHP's ear to the ground and keep an eye out for anything suspicious. Unfortunately, between Stephen's careful moves and us being handicapped by the Justice Department, we may have to wait for him to make the next move."

"So what do we do, Jerr?" asked Clover.

"You'll just have to sit tight until we find something."

Alex leaned back in her seat. "It's not gonna be easy with the feds after us, is it?"

"No, it won't. But, they're easy enough to avoid as long as you know how. I can assure you they won't hinder us."

Clover was tracing circles on her leg with a finger. "So, if we're not working with the NSA anymore and WOOHP is working on its own now, does that mean we get our spysuits back?"

"Of course, Clover. They're ready and waiting."

Clover jumped out of her seat and Sam and Alex had to help hold her back. "Yay! Thank you, Jerry!"

"It's no big deal, really. Is it, Jacob?"

"Not at all."

Jerry checked his watch. "You four had best find something to keep yourselves occupied with until we find something. There's no telling how long it could take."

"Can we go outside the building?" asked Alex.

"I'm afraid not. It's best you remain here where I can find you."

"Besides," said Jacob, "You know the FBI is watching this place closely."

"You're probably right." Said Sam.

They all left the office except for Jerry. Jacob and the girls headed back to their rooms.

The girls talked for a couple of hours and then explored the WOOHP facility. Much of it was off-limits and most of the rest of it was identical-looking office spaces. However, Clover eventually discovered the building possessed a gym, and decided they could all use a good workout.

"Yeah, that's a great idea!" said Alex. "I could use some exercise, myself. How about it, Sam?"

Sam placed her hand over her side. "I'd really love to, but my side's still hurting. I don't wanna tear the wound open."

Alex and Clover looked disappointed. "Well, at least come back for the massage!"

"Yeah, I think I can manage that! I could use one, too."

They returned to the room and Alex and Clover changed into some workout clothes. Sam walked them down to the gym and they left her at the door. Sam sighed and decided to find a computer.

When she finally found a computer lab she found a logged-in computer and decided to do some research. She started by calling up a list of all the buildings in the city within the WOOHP database; a huge list which went on for many pages. She then narrowed the list by eliminating all the buildings that lacked an accessible rooftop. The window refreshed after a few seconds and half the list had vanished. She then narrowed the list further by including only those buildings with a freight elevator that went all the way to the roof, figuring that the bomb would be heavy enough to require mechanical help to lift it. She entered the search criteria in and the window flickered for a few seconds and the list reappeared with just a couple dozen entries. She looked at the names and addresses of the buildings and realized that many of them were well away from the downtown area.

"If I were a nuclear terrorist, where would I set my bomb off?" She thought up an answer after a couple of minutes. "Right in center stage, of course. Don't these guys always want to make a show of themselves?"

She entered new criteria excluding all the buildings outside of the downtown area. The list refreshed with just over a half dozen entries left. She printed out the list and stared at it.

"Where are you?" She wondered aloud. "Are you hiding in one of these, or did I guess wrong?"

She fanned herself with the list and stared out the door, looking for an answer that wouldn't come. An agent nearly passed the room when she saw Sam at the computer and stopped.

"Miss Sam?"

"Yes?"

"Are you alright?"

"Yeah, why?"

"Just wondering why you were here all by yourself."

"My friends went to go workout, and I'm still hurt from the other day, so I decided to do some research on the situation."

"I see. Well, good luck. We're all counting on you." She started to leave.

"Wait, do you know where Jacob is? I want to show him this."

"Which one? I know a few Jacobs who work here."

"Sorry. Jacob Ravask, the NSA agent."

"Oh, him. I think he was going to the firing range a while ago. He might still be down there."

"Where is that?"

"Come with me, I'll show you."

Sam folded the list up and followed the agent to the elevator and she pressed the button for the basement. While the elevator descended, Sam decided to strike up a little conversation to pass the time.

"So, what's your name?"

"Jennifer."

"That's nice. I guess you already know who I am."

"Yep. It's hard not to with a track record like yours."

"How long have you been working here?"

"About two years, now."

"What's your job?"

"Usually I'm on the cleanup crew."

"You're a janitor?"

Jennifer chuckled. "No, silly. I'm a member of a team that goes in an cleans up the messes you girls leave behind."

"Ohh, I see. So what does that involve?"

"Taking the criminals away, putting out fires, capturing dangerous creatures, repairing damaged property, cleaning up hazardous substances, surely you've seen your own handiwork firsthand?"

"Yeah, I guess we're usually so happy with a successful mission we don't notice a lot of the time." They were silent for a few seconds before Sam added, "Sorry if we leave a huge mess when we're done."

"No problem, its all part of the job."

The elevator stopped and they stepped out into the WOOHP laboratories. A thick sheet of Plexiglas separated them from the lab area, where a few dozen scientists were working. Some of them were hunched over tiny machines Sam couldn't see. Others were straddling machines twice their size. Sam wondered which ones they'd be using on the next mission. She followed Jennifer past the labs and towards a door marked "Firing Range – Wear Protective Gear." Just before they reached the doors, Sam heard a loud "pop!" and looked back to see a group of scientists waving off a cloud of smoke pouring from a machine on the floor. She heard someone say "sorry!" before she followed Jennifer through the doors.

The doors led to a small room with a window facing the lab entrance and another door on the left. An agent sat behind the window and handed them hearing protection and safety glasses. Jennifer put on the glasses and said, "As long as they're firing in there, always wear your hearing protection, and never take off the glasses."

"Okay."

"When you hear the bell ring once, that means they'll commence firing. When it rings twice, they'll stop."

"How often does the bell ring?"

"Depends on what they're testing."

They put on the hearing protection and Sam's world went silent. Jennifer opened the sliding door and Sam immediately heard a loud explosion, though greatly muffled. Across from the door about thirty yards away, a pair of scientists were standing next to a huge weapon mounted on a stand and taking notes. Apparently that's what just fired, because the muzzle was smoking and so was the crater in the wall at the far end of the long firing range. She felt a tap on her shoulder and turned towards Jennifer. She made a sign like she was shooting a pistol and pointed down the rows of firing lanes. Sam understood that it meant the small arms range was farther down and nodded.

They got into a cart and drove down the firing range. Scientists or agents occupied every few lanes and were practicing with one sort of weapon or another. Most of them emitted colorful rays of light with various effects on the targets. A few shot flames or sprayed a fine mist.

An agent with a pair of scientists caught her eye. They were wearing heavy protective gear, like the kind people who diffused mines wore. They all looked very nervous, and were carefully handling a small spherical object. One scientist handed the object to the agent and then retreated behind a blast shield. The other one apparently spoke a few words to him and then also retreated to the blast shield. The agent took a few deep breaths, cocked his arm back, and then hurled the object as far as he could throw it. He ducked behind the blast shield in front of him. Sam didn't see exactly what happened because they had passed the bunker by then, but she did hear an enormous explosion accompanied by a brilliant light coming from the bunker and followed by a cloud of dust which spewed from the range, engulfing the agent and both scientists.

Eventually they reached the short handgun firing range. Only a few agents were here, and a few were clustered behind one of the lanes. They walked over to this lane to find Jacob practicing on a target with his pistol. He fired a few shots into the target and unloaded his gun. He pressed a button and the target slid forward on the rail. Twelve holes dotted the head and torso of the paper target in tight clusters, and the agents watching him applauded. Sam heard a bell ring twice, and everyone removed his or her hearing protection. Sam and Jennifer stood back while Jacob chatted with the agents. She wasn't sure if it was the lights or not, but Sam thought he looked more pale than before.

He finally saw her standing there and said, "Hey, Sam! Fancy seeing you all the way down here."

He walked over to where she stood. Up close, Jacob looked exhausted. His eyes looked lifeless and he seemed to be standing up straight only with difficulty.

"I just wanted to show you something." She removed the list from her pocket and handed it to him. Jacob read over the list and handed it back to her.

"Good work. Jerry came up with a similar list not too long ago. Did you find that on your own?"

"Yeah. I just cross-referenced all the criteria I thought were necessary for Stephen's hiding spot."

"That's about what Jerry did. You may well take his place someday at this rate."

"Please don't say that!"

"Hey, I meant that as a compliment."

"Well, it's a bad compliment."

"Geez, sorry."

"Anyway, are you doing anything right now?"

"Not really, why?"

"Just bored. Alex and Clover went to work out and I sorta can't right now."

"I know how that feels." He started to leave.

"Where are you going?"

"Back to my room. I need to lay down."

"Mind if I come as far as my room?"

"Man, you must really be bored."

They left the firing range and returned to the elevator. On the way up, Jacob seemed lost in thought.

"What're you thinking about?"

"Trying to guess Stephen's next move. What do you think he'll do next?"

"Try to contact you somehow. That's my guess. No way he'll come out and say where he is. He'll make us find that out on our own."

"Yeah, that sounds about right."

"The question is, how will he contact us, and can we figure out where he is?"

"We'll just have to wait and see."

The elevator stopped and Jacob stepped out. Sam held the door. "Wait, you're on this floor?"

"Nah, I just needed something to drink."

"Oh." She followed him down the hallway.

"What do you plan on doing once this is over with?" He asked when she caught up.

"I plan on taking a nice long nap and putting this whole nightmare behind me, that's what."

"Sounds like a plan."

"The sooner I can stop playing this high-stakes game the better, you know what I mean?"

"Yeah."

"I'm all for keeping the world safe, but the kinds of danger you people have put me and my friends in is just over the top, you know? I've been lied to, shot, betrayed, chased by mercenaries, and I've almost killed people. If I never have to work with you people again, I'll be just fine with that!"

"That's nice."

"What do you think, Jacob? Do you sometimes feel like the NSA is pushing you around too much?" She looked up and noticed that he wasn't next to her anymore. "Jacob?"

She heard his voice from down the hall behind her. "Sam, I don't feel so good."

She turned around and saw Jacob on the floor in the fetal position. He was shaking uncontrollably and his breathing was shallow and ragged.

"Jacob!"

She knelt beside him and placed her hand on his forehead. It was hot to the touch and he was still shaking. "Come on, don't get sick on me now! Get up!"

He didn't respond. All he did was continue shaking.

Sam looked around. No one was in sight.

"Somebody help me!"

Sam followed the gurney as far as the emergency room doors, where a nurse told her to wait. She watched the doctor and nurses roll the bed around a corner and she lost sight of them. Sam turned to the nurse.

"What's wrong with him?"

"We're not sure. His temperature's extremely high and his muscles are experiencing spasms all over."

"What are you going to do?"

"We'll try to get his muscle spasms under control and reduce his fever, but as far as I can tell that's about all we can do at the moment."

"Thank you." Sam walked away from the emergency room to the waiting room. She found Alex and Clover there, still sweaty from their workout. They ran to her and blurted out, "Sam, what happened?"

"Jacob's sick. I don't know why."

"I guess this'll put him out of commission for a while, huh?" said Alex.

Clover rolled her eyes and sighed. "Wonderful, just wonderful. It's not like we have enough to worry about!"

As if on cue, a hole in the wall appeared and sucked them in.

"On the other hand, Jerry thinks we do need some more things to deal with!"

They slid down the tunnel and crashed into the cushion at the end. It fell away to reveal Jerry's office, with Jerry standing there, calm as ever.

"Good afternoon, ladies."

"Hi, Jerr."

"Let me guess," said Clover as they untangled themselves from one another, "We found him?"

"Possibly. Our sources around the city tell us that a lot of suspicious activity is going on in the upper levels of the Michelangelo Plaza, which isn't far from here."

"What kind of activity?" asked Alex.

"Nothing too out of the ordinary, actually. Just heavily-armed men patrolling the upper ten floors, elevators won't go to those floors, the fact that the men seem to be protecting something, nothing too strange."

The girls rolled their eyes.

"Anyway, it seems that the armed force is what's left of WOLF, so you know what to expect."

Clover sat up straight. "Alright, so what do we do?"

"Since it's likely they're guarding the bomb, you'll be spearheading a raid on the building by WOOHP. Our agents will provide backup and we'll be sending a couple of bomb experts in with you. Speed is of the essence, so get in and get the job done as quickly as possible." He moved to the table in front of the desk. "You'll be taking a portable shield generator wristband, magnet-driven hover-boots, knockout gas-loaded boomerangs, and your old favorites, the bungee belts. The agents backing you up will be carrying stun guns, so watch the crossfire or you may become a useless floor decoration."

He tossed backpacks to Alex and Clover. Sam noticed this and said, "Hey! What about me?"

"You're still injured, Sam. Or are you up to the challenge?"

"You bet!" She stood up too fast and winced noticeably.

"Your courage is admirable as always, but I can't risk sending an injured spy on such an important mission. I'm afraid you'll have to sit this one out."

Dejected, Sam sat down. Alex squeezed her shoulder and turned to Jerry. "Well, we're ready, Jerr!" She and Clover braced themselves, but nothing happened.

"Uh, Jerr, anytime you'd like to WOOHP us would be great."

"It's only 4:00 in the afternoon, girls. We can't charge into an occupied building at rush hour, you know."

"Yeah, that would be a bad idea, I suppose."

"We'll hit the building as soon as the last employee leaves. We've already got security on our side, so…is there something wrong, Clover?"

"Oh, it's nothing! I just remembered what happened the last time we worked with security."

"I can assure you none of your classmates are working at this place."

"Thank goodness. I wonder how David's doing right now?"

"At any rate, I want you two to be careful. Not only are you a spy short, but Jacob is also out of commission."

"You know we'll do our best, Jerry."

"You haven't let me down yet, girls." He pressed the WOOHP button and the three of them were sucked into the ceiling. Jerry saw an assistant standing dumbfounded at the door.

"Why'd you do that?"

"Sorry, force of habit."

Sam did her best to keep on the sunny side of things, but it didn't stop her from becoming despondent from time to time. Clover and Alex did their best to cheer her up. Whenever Sam started looking depressed, they made sure they got busy doing something.

They eventually went to the massage parlor adjacent to the gym. The masseuse's nimble hands smoothed out the knots in their muscles and even helped Sam's wound feel better.

Alex turned to Sam. "I hope Jacob is alright. What's wrong with him?"

"I don't know." Sam paused while the masseuse worked on a tight knot of muscle in her shoulders. "I'll go ask after we get done here."

"I have to say," said Clover, "This really is some bad luck on our part. Not only are we going against those WOLF people again, but this time without you or Jacob." Something went "pop" in Clover's back and she almost melted right then and there.

"Yeah, last time he took care of those WOLF mercenaries almost all by himself. No such help this time."

"Yeah, but at least we're not going alone." Said Alex. "This time we've got WOOHP agents backing us up, and they're all using stun guns, so no pointless killing this time, right?"

"Maybe not from your end, but those mercenaries aren't exactly carrying dart guns."

"Ahh, we'll be fine." Said Clover. "Between our new gadgets and the WOOHP backup, we'll have that bomb in no time."

After the massage, they went to the infirmary to check on Jacob. They found him comatose on a bed, an I.V. stuck into his arm and an oxygen tube under his nose. A nurse was checking the monitor when they walked up.

"Hi, can I help you?"

Sam spoke for the group. "Yes, we wanted to know what happened to him? All I know is he collapsed and had a high fever."

"The truth is, he was already sick, but he kept pushing himself as hard as ever. He never slowed down to rest, and that made the fever even worse. It's a combination of high stress with a high fever."

"Really?"

"Yeah. We were afraid it was Tetanus at first, but he's lucky that's not the case. If you'll excuse me, I have some other patients to take care of." She walked past the girls and out of the infirmary.

The girls circled around the bed. Jacob looked weak and helpless lying there in a hospital bed. His hair was a matted mess and his skin was ghostly pale. He didn't look at all like the confident agent they'd been working with.

"Well, so this is it." Said Clover. "Our fearless partner has been done in by a microbe and his own overconfidence. Funny, I'd expect it to be some sort of super villain the way he fights."

Alex glared at Clover. "Come on, that's rude!"

"But it's true!"

"Yeah, but that's no reason to insult him when he's out cold."

"Well, it's his fault anyway. I knew he wasn't well this morning, and I thought he looked worse for wear last night, too."

They all crossed their arms and stared at the bed. "So what do we do now?" asked Clover.

"I guess we wait for Jerry to send us, or at least you guys off."

"What time is it, anyway?"

Sam checked her watch. "Wow, it's 6:30 already?"

Alex stretched. "Man, time flies when you're getting a deep-tissue massage!"

At that exact moment, floor panels dropped away and Alex and Clover disappeared, leaving Sam alone in the infirmary with their comatose partner.

A pair of WOOHP zip craft swung around a building and sped towards one of the taller buildings in the downtown area. Alex and Clover were each in one of them with six other WOOHP agents. The thick clouds overhead created an early night, which gave the ships extra cover as they swooped through the night towards their destination.

The stubby wings of the craft ended in jet engines which were modified for quiet operation, thus the inhabitants on the streets below had no idea their best chance for survival was flying just a couple hundred feet overhead.

Clover walked to the cockpit of the zip craft and leaned in. "How much further?"

"We're coming up on it now, Miss." Said the pilot. He banked around another building and centered the windshield on a tall building on the edge of the downtown area. Most of the lights were out, except for the top ten floors.

"Where are we landing? On the roof?"

One of the WOOHP agents, a gruff-looking black man stood next to her. "Negative, we're landing in the park behind it and going in through the back door. Didn't you pay attention at the briefing?"

"Hey! Do you know who you're talking to?"

"Yes, and do you know you're talking to one of the two bomb experts on this team?"

"Well sorry-gee! I've only done this a hundred times and it's always easier to go in through the roof!"

The navigator turned around in her seat. "If you two want to step outside and settle this, you're more than welcome to! We're only about three hundred feet above solid concrete!"

"We're coming up on the landing zone." Said the pilot. "Everyone get ready to deploy!"

Clover and the bomb expert settled down in their seats. The pilot banked well short of the building and brought it around to the back. A park sat below them, with a pair of open spaces large enough to allow the ships to land. The ships slowed down to a halt and the engines pointed down to allow them to hover. The pilots reduced the throttles and lowered the black ships down below the trees. As soon as the wheels touched the grass, fourteen agents hopped out of them and made a beeline for the building.

Alex caught up to Clover as they entered the shadows of the trees. It felt good to be back in their old jumpsuits again.

"This is it, Clover! You ready?"

"I was born ready for this!"

The team reached the cargo doors in the back of the building and stood aside as the security experts deciphered the electronic locks and let them in. The agents poured into the open doors with their stun guns ready and quickly scanned the room as they entered. Only the security lights were on, and no one was in the loading platform. All clear so far.

Alex and Clover led the way out of the platform and towards the front of the building. They stopped at every corner and hallway junction to check for mercenaries, but found none. The reached the elevators and pressed the buttons.

"Nobody' here." Said Alex.

"You think they're all on the top ten floors?"

"That's my best guess."

"You know these things don't go all the way up, right?"

"I know, we take them as far as they'll go and take the stairs the rest of the way up."

The elevators arrived and the doors opened. A pair of agents leaned into each one to check for traps. Finding none, they waved the others in. A notice on the panel stated that the elevators were malfunctioning and would not rise to the 25th floor and above.

"Go figure" muttered Clover as she pressed the button for the 24th floor. The doors closed and the elevators rapidly ascended the building.

When the doors opened at the 24th floor, Alex and Clover started to exit, but were stopped by the agents. One of them sprayed a mist in front of the door, which revealed trip lasers at the bottom. They each stepped over the laser and found explosives attached to the walls on either side of the elevators.

"Man, I guess they're ready for us." Said Alex.

"Nobody's ever ready for us, right Alex?"

"If you say so." Two sets of staircases at the back and front of the building led up. "Let's go."

They split into two teams. Alex headed for the back while Clover led her team to the front.

Clover's team reached the front stairs. The agents checked for hostiles before moving into the stairwell. Clover looked up and immediately noticed a problem. The stairs above their floor were damaged beyond repair, meaning they couldn't go up.

"Do you guys have grappling hooks or something?"

"No ma'am, we weren't issued any." Said one agent.

"Well that's just great. You guys find another way in. I'll keep going this way."

The agents departed and headed back to the elevators. Clover removed the buckle from her belt and fired it at the ceiling a few floors above. She heard the magnetic hook catch on something and she started ascending the broken staircase. She ascended a couple of floors and got off. This staircase didn't go to the roof, so she'd have to work around to the front and go up from there. The only problem with that was an unknown number of mercenaries stood between her and the other staircase, and she didn't have any agents backing her up anymore.

She stood next to the door and muttered, "No time like the present." She threw open the door and leaped into the opposite room just as a volley of gunfire shredded the walls around her. She tried to peek out of the room to get a look at her attacker, but all she saw was a barrel before another burst caused her to retreat. Thinking fast, she activated her hover boots and turned on her shield. The bracelet glowed and a transparent elliptical shield materialized from her wrist.

"Cool!"

She stood up and braced herself for the charge. Using the boots like skates and holding the shield between herself and her attacker, she slid out into the hallway. There was no gunman, just a machine gun attached to a motion-tracking device. The gun saw her and started firing. The bullets bounced off the shield while Clover skated towards the gun. The bracelet beeped, meaning that the shield was about to fail. Clover placed one foot on the wall and then started skating along the wall. The gun lost track of her for a second just as her shield failed. This gave her just enough time to jump behind the gun and turn it off. She deactivated her boots and ran to the elevator, where the other agents were climbing out of the shaft.

"What happened? We heard gunfire."

"It's nothing, let's go."

Alex's team was having a much harder time. As soon as they'd entered the 28th floor, mercenaries were firing on them. The agents returned fire, but they were still pinned down.

"We gotta get rid of these guys!" said the agent kneeling next to Alex.

"No kidding! She flinched as another burst tore at the wall they were hiding behind.

"We've got to get past these guys, now!"

"Hang on, I think I have something!" She drew the boomerang from her belt. She waited for the mercenaries to reload and then threw it down the corridor. The boomerang lodged itself in the opposite wall and began spewing smoke. Within seconds the mercenaries were out cold.

"Let's go!"

They sprinted down the corridor and over the unconscious mercenaries. Alex paused to dislodge her boomerang and then continued to the place the mercenaries were guarding; the freight elevator.

"This thing goes all the way to the roof." Said one of the agents.

Alex pressed the button. "Be ready for anything."

The elevator arrived and they all filed in.

Clover's team forced their way through the 31st floor. The agents kept a steady stream of stunner fire on the mercenaries while working towards the back staircase. They'd discovered the mercenaries had destroyed the stairs leading to every other floor, meaning that they'd have to zigzag up the building and be forced into confrontations with waiting mercenaries. The only working elevator was the freight elevator, and it only responded from the 28th floor. To make matters worse, the elevator shafts were mined.

An agent put one last stun round into a mercenary and they charged for the staircase. They ran up a flight of stairs and Clover waved them through the next door. Just as the last agent passed her, an explosive detonated under the floor and it fell away with Clover still on it. Clover instinctively grabbed her bungee belt and fired it at the next level. The hook grabbed the wall and Clover stopped and swung into the wall while the wreckage crashed into the lower stairwell.

One of the agents leaned over. "Clover, are you okay?"

"I'm fine, keep going! I'll catch up!" She started winding the belt in and climbed the wall to the next floor. When she reached the buckle, she deactivated it as she kicked off the wall and somersaulted gracefully onto the staircase. She ran up the stairs to the next floor. As soon as she opened the door, she heard something go "click." She dove out of the way as automatic fire pockmarked the door as it closed. She opened her Compowder and used the mirror to see around the corner. A lone mercenary was crouched down the hall and aiming his rifle at her. He spotted the movement and she dodged back as a burst took a chunk of the wall where her head was.

Clover turned her hover boots on and pressed the switch on her bracelet, but nothing happened.   
"Oh, this is just great! Nice timing you piece of junk!"

She took a deep breath, exhaled and charged into the corridor. The boots gave her an extra boost of speed as she aimed for an alcove down the hall. She kept her head low as the mercenary's bullets danced around her feet and decorated the walls with new holes.

She made the alcove and stopped. Her heart was racing, her breath was short, and she was sweating profusely.

The gun fired again and drew a line right past her hiding spot. He's calling me out, she thought. As soon as I set foot out there, he'll nail me. What to do? What to do! She remembered the boomerang. It looked pathetic in this situation, but it was all she had. Let's see, no shield, and no weapons except this little thing, no backup, and only a slight chance this'll work. Why does this always have to be difficult?

She threw the boomerang at the mercenary and charged him. The sight of two targets flying at him momentarily distracted the mercenary, and the boomerang hit him square in the face. Clover followed it up by leaping at the stunned mercenary and planting both feet firmly in his chest. She managed to knock the mercenary down and his gun went flying from his hands. However, the mercenary rolled backwards and stopped a few feet from Clover. As he stood up, he drew a knife strapped to his leg and hopped up into a fighting stance.

Clover shuffled her feet and braced for a fight. The mercenary charged first and slashed with the knife. Clove dodged it and then leapt back to avoid a second slash. The mercenary reversed his grip on the knife and slashed at Clover, following it up with a stab. Clover barely evaded the stab, grabbed the mercenary by the shoulders, and then flipped over him and kicked off his head. He went down, but quickly stood up again.

"You're tough!"

"Thanks, it's been a real pleasure fighting ya, kid."

"You're welcome, too bad you're about to lose."

They attacked each other simultaneously this time. Clover disarmed him with a well-timed roundhouse kick, and followed it with a reverse kick to the stomach. This stunned the mercenary, and she took advantage by delivering a swift somersault kick to his jaw. His eyes rolled back in his head, but he still didn't fall down and he started recovering.

"Oh, no you don't!"

She flew at him and planted her right fist in the side of his face. Something cracked, and the mercenary fell to the floor out cold.

She looked up and realized she was standing in front of the freight elevator. Without thinking, she pressed the button. A few seconds later, the door opened and Clover found herself on the business end of a half dozen stun guns.

"Wait! Don't shoot! I'm a good guy!"

"Clover!" said Alex. "What happened? Where's the rest of the team?"

"Right here!" said a voice from behind Clover. The rest of the team was walking up. "We've neutralized the rest of the mercenaries, let's get that bomb."

"Right, let's go!" Clover waved them on. It was then she noticed that her hand was limp and starting to swell up. Once on the elevator, she turned to the agent she'd argued with on the transport. "It's all over after this, right?"

"Yeah, it should be."

"Good! Because I think I broke my hand!" She held up her right hand.

Alex looked concerned. "Does that hurt?"

"Strangely enough, no."

The elevator stopped. The indicator said "R."

"Well, let's finish this, Clover."

"It's about time."

The elevator doors opened into the night. The roof was well lit and a helipad sat in the middle. Just to the left of the helipad in a shadow sat an ordinary-looking object that seemed out of place. They hurried to it, and the team made way for the bomb experts, who began examining the object.

Alex and Clover stood off from the rest of the team so that Alex could get a good look at Clover's hand.

"Man, that guy must have had an iron jaw."

"Must have. Does it hurt yet?"

"Sort of." She gently squeezed the swelling tissue, which was tender to the touch and turning purple.

"You'll need to get that looked at quick. Guess you won't be eating sushi for a while."

The bomb experts were arguing with each other. The girls looked over at the team, who all looked like they just found out their mothers had died. One of the bomb experts hurried over to the girls.

"What's wrong?"

"This isn't the bomb."

It took a second for that to register. "What?"

"This isn't the bomb. It's a decoy."

Alex grabbed him by the collar. "A decoy! Did you just say this is a dummy?"

"Yes, that's exactly what I said."

Clover took him away from Alex. "How can you be certain? You've only been looking at it for a couple of minutes!"

"There's no radiation coming from it! If that thing had a microgram of Uranium or Plutonium in it we'd know, but we're not getting anything!"

Clover let go of him. "So you're saying the real bomb is somewhere else?"

"Apparently, yes."

Clover started getting hysterical. "Hey Alex, did you hear that? This isn't the bomb. Isn't that hilarious?"

Alex shook Clover hard. "Get a hold of yourself, Clover! We've got to find the real bomb now!"

"And just how do we do that?"

"I don't know, but we have to find a way!"

The WOOHP zip craft came to hover over the helipad and the first one was descending. Alex wracked her brain. What do we do? What the hell are we going to do?

Across the city, Stephen stood at the edge of another building rooftop. He could see the Michelangelo Plaza clearly from here as well as the WOOHP building, and he smiled to himself. The wind picked up and ruffled his coat. He turned to smell the wind. Death was coming. He opened a cell phone and dialed a number. 


	12. Chapter Twelve

Chapter Twelve  
  
Sam suddenly found herself all alone in the infirmary. Alone aside from an unresponsive Jacob. It took her a moment to realize Alex and Clover had vanished abruptly and it took a little longer to remember why.  
  
I suppose that means they've found the bomb, she thought. Alex and Clover should be back soon, and then this'll all be over.  
  
Sam walked around to one side of the bed. Jacob's gun and his shoulder harness lay on the bedside table. His cleaned and pressed clothes hung in the closet facing the bed. She pulled the sheets up on him, knowing he would get cold easily with a fever. Just a few more hours and we can all go back to normal, she thought. Dealing with thieves is one thing. You can always catch them and return the stolen goods to their owners. What I've seen this past week is way beyond any of that. The bomb was just the first part of Stephen's plan. After that, events would be set in motion that no one can reverse. Is this the sort of thing that Jacob deals in every day? Not only looking out for himself and those immediately affected, but also keeping an eye on the extreme-long-term effects of his actions? I just don't see how one could manage doing that on a daily basis without going insane, or at least aging prematurely. I wonder where he'll end up after this crisis is resolved? That's probably something 99.9% of America won't ever find out.  
  
She stretched her back and arms, but not enough to aggravate the wound. She decided there was nothing more she could do here and left the infirmary. She found herself wandering around the floor until she found a waiting room with a good view of the city. The buildings around and below the WOOHP headquarters appeared as black shapes with holes cut in them to allow light to escape. Bright points of light moved up and down the serpentine roads, going about their business as usual. Sam remembered hearing about a big Lakers game tonight, which meant there would be lots of people in town. Lots of people in a town threatened by a nuclear attack without a care in the world, she thought. She envied those people. She wished she could just be home watching a movie with her family instead of worrying about the future of the entire world, unable to help. She wondered what kind of excuse she would come up with if her mom ever saw her wound. It was on her front and backside, so it would be difficult to hide. She decided to leave that for later.  
  
"Hello, Sam. Feeling alright?" Sam turned to find Jerry standing next to her.  
  
"Yeah, I'm okay. I guess."  
  
"I'm sorry that you couldn't go on this mission, but I had no choice. Between your injury and the importance of this mission, I simply couldn't risk anything."  
  
"I know, I know. I'm just upset that the world's in trouble and I can't do anything about it."  
  
"You've done all you can, Sam. Sometimes we just have to sit back and trust others to get the job done when we can't."  
  
"This is the same reason why we stayed on this mission. None of us could stand sitting back and watching and waiting and doing nothing while the world's in trouble."  
  
"Well, just remember that your friends will be back soon enough, and then you can all finally go home."  
  
"Does that mean I'm still confined to the building?"  
  
"I'm afraid so, Sam. There's too many FBI agents watching the building right now, and I can't risk you going out alone in your condition."  
  
Sam felt the building shake slightly, and then a pair of WOOHP zip craft eased away from the building and sped off into the night.  
  
"So what do we do now?"  
  
"For now it's just wait and see."  
  
"We wait and see if they get the bomb?"  
  
"No, we wait for them to return with the bomb and then decide where to go from there. Remember, we are still on the FBI's bad side."  
  
"Point." She stared at the city for a little while. "Will Jacob be okay?"  
  
"He's sick as a dog, but he'll be fine. As long as he gets plenty of rest, he should be back on his feet before the week is over."  
  
Then he'll be shipped off to God-knows-where is what you won't say, Sam didn't add.  
  
"Well Sam, I have a lot of things I need to take care of. Please don't wander too far." Jerry strolled out of the room and down the hall.  
  
Sam once again found herself alone in the big WOOHP building. She wondered how Alex and Clover were doing without her. It wasn't the first time they'd gone without her, and they've always been fine. There's no need to worry about those two, she thought. They can take care of themselves. Besides, they've got a dozen WOOHP agents backing them up. No need to worry at all.  
  
"Then why am I so worried?"  
  
Try as she might, she couldn't shake the ominous sensations that crept through her stomach. Something wasn't right. Only this time, it wasn't her allies keeping things from her. This time, she felt as if something was horribly wrong with the current situation. It just felt too easy.  
  
Her Compowder rang and she answered it.  
  
"Sam here, what's up?"  
  
"Is this Samantha?" said an eerily familiar voice. There was no video on the signal, so the screen showed only static, but that didn't stop Sam's blood from freezing. She cradled the Compowder close and went to a corner of the room, making sure nobody was looking.  
  
"What do you want?"  
  
"To speak to my nephew. Where is he?"  
  
"He can't talk right now, so you'll just have to tell me whatever you wanted to say."  
  
"Is that so? Too bad, you won't understand a word of what I was going to say."  
  
"What?"  
  
Before Sam could stop him, Stephen began spouting off a string of Russian. All Sam could do was hit the record button and hope to get it translated somehow. When Stephen finished his message, Sam said, "How did you contact me?"  
  
"It wasn't easy. Your encryption software is outstanding, but not impervious."  
  
"Congratulations."  
  
"Why thank you. Goodbye, Samantha."  
  
"Wait! Don't hang up!"  
  
"If you're trying to stall me so I can be traced, it won't work."  
  
"You're not being traced. No one knows you've called me. Yet."  
  
"Is there something you wanted to say, then?"  
  
Sam paused. She wouldn't get much of a chance to say anything, so whatever she said next had to be important.  
  
"Where are you?"  
  
"I'm afraid you'll have to find someone who speaks Russian to help you with that."  
  
Shoot, try again. "How long have you been planning this?"  
  
"Since I discovered Jacob was hunting me."  
  
"Because you'd have to draw him out, right?"  
  
"Exactly."  
  
"So why hold a whole city at gunpoint just to get one man?"  
  
"I already told you why. This isn't just about him and me; it's about performing the ultimate service for my country."  
  
"Hmph, I hope you like being captured, because-"  
  
"You've dispatched a pair of jets to come get me, right?"  
  
"What...how did you know?"  
  
"If I had some binoculars, I could watch the whole thing going down right now."  
  
Oh no.  
  
"Nice little diversion, isn't it? The last of my wolves proved useful after all."  
  
There was a pause. "I want to see my wayward nephew one last time before I go. Please do an old man a favor and grant his last request." The line went dead, leaving Sam alone with a possible clue she couldn't understand.  
  
"Great, now what?" She wasn't quite sure what to do with the message. On top of that, Alex and Clover were going the wrong way. The easiest thing would be to take it to Jerry, but she was worried what might happen. What would Stephen do if he spotted a WHOOP jet heading right for him? And that was only if he revealed his location in the message. What if the message was some riddle only Jacob could understand? Even families that hate one another have inside jokes. Not like Jacob's in any condition to help anyway. So where does that leave me? Stuck between a rock and a hard place, that's where.  
  
A nurse entered the room. "Excuse me, Jacob's awake now, if you want to see him."  
  
"Yeah, I will. Thanks."  
  
"He's still very weak, so don't get him excited or anything." She led the way down the hall past the infirmary and to the recovery ward. They stopped at a door with a pair of WOOHP agents standing outside.  
  
"What are they for?" Sam whispered.  
  
"To make sure your friend doesn't try anything stupid, or at least that's what I've been told." The nurse showed her ID to the guards and they let her and Sam in. "I'll stay outside for now. Just call if you need anything." The nurse left the room.  
  
Sam walked over to the bed and sat down in the chair beside it. Jacob's eyes were half-open, and he didn't bother moving an inch. Once again, his gun lay on the bedside table.  
  
He looked at her and said "hey." His voice was weak and his skin still pale.  
  
"Hi, how's it going?"  
  
"Not too bad. The bed's comfy."  
  
"Don't lie to me. You're sick as hell."  
  
"This is nothing. Just a fever."  
  
"A fever that made you collapse right in front of me."  
  
"Like I said, a fever."  
  
Sam could tell that his strength was already fading fast. He wouldn't be conscious for long.  
  
"Listen," she lowered her voice to make sure the guards couldn't hear, "Stephen contacted me a few minutes ago."  
  
Jacob's eyes widened. "Go on."  
  
"He had a message for you, but it's in Russian. I can't understand it."  
  
"Have you told anyone else?"  
  
"No."  
  
"Did you record it?"  
  
"Yeah, most of it." She opened her Compowder and played the message just loud enough for them to hear it. When the message finished, Jacob asked her to play it again. When that was done, he was silent. It was a couple of minutes before Sam realized he'd fallen asleep.  
  
"Hey, don't go to sleep on me yet!" She nudged him, but got no response. "Crud, not good." She shook him harder, but still got no response. She looked around the room in desperation, but it was hopeless. She stood up and paced around the room. Without Jacob to translate, she'd have to take it to Jerry, and there was no telling what would happen then. If Jacob didn't show up wherever Stephen was, he might set the bomb off. She paused next to the monitor, still at a loss for ideas. Then a label on the I.V. bag caught her eye.  
  
"Propofol?" The name had a familiar ring to it, and she tried to remember why. After a few minutes, she remembered. She'd heard the name in her biology class, and it was a general anesthetic, the sort doctors use to put patients under in an operating room.  
  
"I don't believe this! They've drugged him up!" Depending on the concentration, Jacob could be out for hours as long as the fluid kept dripping into his system. Sam turned the drip monitor off and disconnected the bag from the catheter.  
  
"So this is how they're keeping him out of trouble; by keeping him out cold."  
  
So now what?  
  
She was about to make up her mind to see Jerry when Jacob muttered something. Sam went back to the bed and asked, "What did you say? C'mon, say it again!"  
  
"Solomon." Jacob was totally unconscious now.  
  
"Solomon? What kind of help is that?"  
  
The name is familiar, but from what? She knew about King Solomon from the Bible, but didn't see how this could be related to the situation. She remembered hearing what sounded like wind over Stephen's phone, so she knew he was outside, probably away from any traffic or busy places. She walked over the window and looked out the blinds. Most of the buildings were lit up, as it was still fairly early in the evening. Once exception lay off to the right. Aside from a few security lights, it was almost completely darkened. It was still under construction, as told by the scaffolding on the roof. Sam remembered hearing something major about that building a few weeks ago. Then the name struck like a lightning bolt.  
  
The Solomon Carlita Estates – a brand-new high-rise apartment building. It wasn't finished yet, even though the first tenants were supposed to be moving in next week. Sam pulled the list from her pocket and checked it. Sure enough, it was there.  
  
"Is this it?" she said to no one. "Is this the real deal, or am I wrong?"  
  
Sam found herself facing another decision. Was this the right place? If so, what should I do? What if it's not? Then what? Why'd they have to drug Jacob? When will Alex and Clover get back? Should I tell Jerry what I know? Or...should I do this myself?  
  
The thought nailed her feet to the floor. She'd seen firsthand what kind of fighter Stephen was. She wondered if she could take him on single-handedly. She wondered what she would do once she got there. How would she take on Stephen, all by herself? Here eyes fell on Jacob's gun.  
  
"If I get the first shot off, then I win." But could she do it? Could she take a man's life, even if she had no other choice?  
  
I don't have to kill him, just incapacitate. But will he let me is the question.  
  
She still wasn't sure if this was the right thing to do. Too many things she didn't know. Sam knew she was a good fighter, but had no idea how she stacked up to Stephen's skill. She stared at Jacob's gun, and she remembered something he said at the apartment:  
  
"...you and me and Alex and Clover and Jerry and everyone else involved in this operation are going to do everything in our power to stop Stephen."  
  
He's right, she thought. If it's within my power to go fight Stephen, then that's what I'm going to do.  
  
Sam picked the gun and harness off the table. She took off her jacket and put the harness on, adjusting the straps for her smaller frame. She holstered the gun and put her jacket back on. She looked herself in a mirror, noticing the slight bulge under the jacket. It would have to do. She stood beside the bed again.  
  
"Jacob, you told me that we have to do whatever is within our power to stop this guy. Well, it's fallen within my power to go face Stephen by myself. I don't really see any other way around it, and I don't know what will happen when I get there. All I can say is, I've enjoyed working with you. It's probably a far-fetched hope, but, see you later."  
  
She nodded to the guards as she left the room and down the hall towards the elevator. While she waited for the elevator to come, she remembered that the FBI had the building surrounded. She needed a way out if she was going to go see Stephen. She took the elevator to the floor where the cafeteria was, not terribly sure what she was doing. Staff and off-duty agents occupied the cafeteria. She was about to go in when she spotted Jennifer heading for the elevator. Sam caught up to her and got her attention.  
  
"Oh, hey Sam. What's up?"  
  
"Nothing, really. Say, if someone needed to leave the building like, right now, how would they go about doing it?"  
  
Jennifer noticed the bulge in Sam's jacket and figured out what she was doing immediately. "Hmm, it won't be easy. The FBI's keeping a close watch on this place. You'd have to sneak out without them seeing you." Jennifer focused for a minute. "Hmm, if I recall correctly, this building and the one next to it used to be owned by the same company before WOOHP bought it. There was a service tunnel which ran between the two, but it's supposedly been sealed off."  
  
Sam's countenance fell.  
  
"However, I also heard the tunnel was merely closed off, and not very well at that. Supposedly the folks next door still use it for storage."  
  
"Is there any place where the tunnel comes out on the surface?"  
  
"Yeah, there's one I know of about a block away from the building, which is farther away than the FBI is watching this place."  
  
"Thanks, Jenn. I owe you one."  
  
"Don't mention it. Oh, by the way, Sam."  
  
"Yeah?"  
  
"Pull the trigger straight back in one smooth motion."  
  
"What?"  
  
"Don't jerk it back like most rookies do. That'll throw your aim off."  
  
"Oh, thanks."  
  
Jennifer winked at Sam and stepped into the elevator, and then she was gone. Sam took another elevator down to the basement level. A series of turns took her into a less trafficked area of the basement, where storage and utility rooms commanded most of the available space. Sam followed a corridor that ended at a door marked "NO ENTRY. EXECUTIVE AUTHORIZATION REQUIRED." Sam stepped over the chains barring the way and examined the door. It was made of NASA-grade steel, and an electronic lock held it shut. Sam opened her Compowder and plugged it into the lock. The hacking program activated and had the lock opened within a few seconds.  
  
"Nobody's been here for years, probably."  
  
She pulled the door open and looked inside. The smell of dust and plywood met her nose, and she could see why once her eyes adjusted to the darkness. The tunnel was packed with crates and covered things sitting on palates. Most of them had acquired a thick layer of dust. Sam supposed this was where they put things they didn't need and couldn't get rid of. She climbed over the first stack of crates in front of her and then dropped down to the floor. A narrow lane led between the crates and equipment. She followed it for many paces before a side lane appeared. She looked down the lane and saw a ladder leading up to a hatch in the roof of the tunnel. She climbed the ladder, opened the hatch, and continued up to the street level.  
  
The opening led to an alley a good distance from the WOOHP building. Sam climbed out and looked around. Everything was still wet from the rain. Black FBI vehicles were everywhere on the side facing the WOOHP building, but it was clear on the other end of the alley. She cautiously backed away from the FBI agents and walked to the street on the other end.  
  
Once there, she hailed a taxi and told the driver to take her to the Solomon Carlita Estates. It took several minutes, but eventually they reached the building and Sam paid the fare and stepped out. The cab took off, leaving her staring up at the towering edifice. Knowing who and what were up there sent a chill down her spine, and caused the building to appear more threatening than inviting. She took a deep breath and walked into the lobby.  
  
Sam's farewell had not fallen on deaf ears. Jacob was still conscious, but just barely. Her words entered his ears and slowly worked their way in, percolating through his anesthesia-addled mind, slowly but surely, until they finally reached his consciousness.  
  
Sam, you idiot! You're going to get yourself killed!  
  
Jacob bolted awake and sat up with a start, immediately regretting doing so. His head swam, and he kept it under control as best he could. He noticed that his catheter was not connected to the I.V. bag, and when he saw the label, he realized why.  
  
"Great, now I owe her one."  
  
He pulled the catheter from his arm and stepped out of bed. He still felt weak, from the fever or the drugs he couldn't tell.  
  
Not good, I'm not up to full strength. Have to make do with what I have.  
  
He started for the door, and then it opened by itself. A male nurse and the two guards stood in the way.  
  
"I'm sorry, Mr. Jacob, but we can't let you leave. You're still sick and need rest." His eyes belied the fact that he knew what was in the I.V. solution.  
  
"Stand aside, this concerns the fate of the operation and possibly the rest of the world."  
  
"I can't do that."  
  
Jacob looked from the nurse to the agents, who returned only stone-cold glares.  
  
Jacob sighed. "Sorry about this."  
  
"About what?"  
  
Jacob kicked the nurse in the shin, and delivered a knockout blow to all three of them within two seconds. They collapsed at his feet. "Sorry guys, but a friend of mine is in danger, and I'm not about to let her die because of me."  
  
He went to his closet and found his clothes cleaned and hung up. He exchanged his hospital gown for the clothes, found his gun missing, and guessed where it was. He checked the hallway before making haste to the elevator.  
  
Sam entered the empty lobby. The lights were on and her footsteps echoed loudly on the polished marble. She walked past the reception desk, past the lounge chairs, and past the security checkpoint, which was inactive. She followed the hallway past the first set of elevators to a second set that went all the way up to the roof. She pressed the call button and tied her hair back while she waited for the elevator to descend. She stepped in when it arrived and pressed the button for the roof. The elevator accelerated quickly and smoothly. Sam drew the pistol and checked the magazine. Full. She replaced it and jacked the bolt to chamber the first round.  
  
She brushed her hair out of the way and pointed the gun at the floor, holding it with both hands. It felt just a little too large for her hands, but compensated by being light as a feather. She looked up and saw her reflection in the stainless steel door. Standing there with the gun in her hands, her eyes focused and her body tensed for action, she thought she looked a little like Jacob.  
  
"Guess we're not too different, you and I."  
  
The elevator passed the 15th floor and continued to speed towards the roof.  
  
Alex and Clover huddled in the cramped cabin of their zip craft. Most of the agents had stayed behind to clean up, but they and a few others were sent back to WOOHP HQ. Clover's hand and wrist were tightly wrapped up, and Alex was leaning forward to see out the cockpit. Clover was muttering about how badly a cast was going to clash with all her outfits. Well, except for a couple that would sort of hide it.  
  
"Come on, can't we go any faster?" Alex asked the pilot.  
  
"'Fraid not. This is as fast as we can go in stealth mode. Any faster and people will be able to hear the engines."  
  
"Well, just hurry, okay?"  
  
"I'm going as fast as I can. Just sit tight."  
  
Alex leaned back in her seat. It wasn't often they were led on a wild goose chase, and this time they'd been duped big time. The only thing they could do now was get back to WOOHP as fast as possible and try to figure out where to go from there.  
  
Clover turned to Alex. "I hate wild goose chases, don't you?"  
  
"No kidding. I wonder what we're gonna do now?"  
  
"Well, I'm going to have to get a cast, for starters."  
  
"Ooh! Let me be the first to sign it!"  
  
"Of course! How could I not let by best friends be the first ones?" Her optimism surprised Alex. She figured being put out of action in the middle of a crisis would have been plenty enough to bum her out. Alex's Compowder chimed and she answered it. Jerry was on the other end.  
  
"What's up, Jerr?"  
  
"I'm afraid I have some bad news. Sam is missing."  
  
"What?"  
  
"You heard me, Sam has disappeared and we're not sure where she went."  
  
Clover scooted closer to look at the screen. "When did she vanish?"  
  
"About 15 minutes ago. That was the last time anyone saw her."  
  
"We've got to find her! She shouldn't go anywhere at a time like this!"  
  
"I'm afraid it gets worse. Jacob is also missing. His guards were unconscious and he was not in his room."  
  
"Do you think he knocked them out?" asked Alex.  
  
"Most likely, yes."  
  
"How could he even move? He was sick as could be."  
  
"He's very strong, Alex. It takes a lot to take the fight out of him."  
  
"What about Sam?" asked Clover. "Could she have done it?"  
  
"Unlikely. Jacob vanished well after Sam did, and the guards hadn't been out for long."  
  
"Why do you think they left?"  
  
"My hunch is that Stephen contacted them somehow and they've gone off to see him."  
  
"Where did they go? Have you tried Sam's Compowder?"  
  
"We don't know, and Sam either left it somewhere or isn't answering. There's something else you should know. Someone had given Jacob an I.V. solution with an anesthetic mixed in."  
  
"Someone was trying to keep him out of it?" burst Alex.  
  
"Apparently."  
  
"How did he wake up, then?"  
  
"One of the nurses said Sam went to visit him shortly before she disappeared. She might have disconnected the drugs, which allowed him to wake up and escape."  
  
"What should we do?" asked Clover.  
  
"Get back here on the double. We have to figure out where they went, and Clover needs attention." Jerry's signal ended.  
  
The zip craft came up on the WOOHP building. Alex could make out figures waiting for them on the rooftop. The ship circled the building a couple of times to throw off its speed and then descended to the helipad. Alex's mind was still awash with questions as the door opened and agents helped them down. Why on earth did Sam take off like that? Is Jacob heading to the same place? Do they know where Stephen is? What'll happen when they get there?  
  
The elevator slowed down as it approached the roof. It seemed to take forever to slow down and finally bring itself to a halt. The indicator read "R," and Sam stood to one side with the gun pointed at the ceiling. The doors parted and Sam peeked around the corner. The roof was fairly well-lit, but she couldn't see anyone. She stepped out around the corner with the gun ready. She quickly looked each way, and still saw no one. Like the rest of the city, the roof was still wet. The lights up here and from the city below had an eerie orange tint, bathing the rooftop in strange light. The lights from the city reflected off the low-flying clouds, the reddish afterglow adding to the already ominous atmosphere.  
  
She walked forward, gun extended, her senses clawing at the air for anything unusual. Her ears picked up the faintest sound of metal scraping against metal. It came from just behind and to the left, almost right above where she was standing. She whirled around to the left and raised her gun to where the sound came from. The sights found Stephen standing above on the scaffolding, his gun drawn and pointing right at her.  
  
It seemed to take forever for the gun to finally center on Stephen, and once it did she pulled the trigger right as Stephen did. Stephen's bullet grazed her side just above her waist and she felt her wound tear open. She pulled the trigger just slightly too hard and the gun fired to the right of where she was aiming. Stephen stepped off the scaffolding as she fired and her bullet tore a hole in his coat sleeve and released the faintest spray of blood. He descended on her like a ghost, his coat billowing behind him and his arms outstretched and aiming for her throat.  
  
Sam sidestepped under his arms and knocked his gun out of his hand, and then stepped away from him and swung her gun around towards his head. Stephen blocked her arm and Sam pushed with all her might against him. She pulled the trigger and missed. She pushed harder and fired again, this time almost hitting him. She pushed again with all her might and fired the gun at his neck. Stephen twisted his head out of the way and the bullet grazed his neck, sending a small spray of blood into the air. They broke the grapple and Sam swung the gun around again. This time Stephen kicked it out of her hand and they both stepped away from each other.  
  
"Where is Jacob?"  
  
"He couldn't make it."  
  
"I don't believe you."  
  
"I'm all that you've got right now, old man."  
  
"All the powers of Hell couldn't stop him on this night."  
  
"Why is that?"  
  
"If you understood that, you'd be so many levels above what you are it would boggle your mind."  
  
"I've come here to stop you, or die trying. That's all."  
  
"You're really ready to die to protect your loved ones?"  
  
"Yes."  
  
"It's a shame that we must be enemies."  
  
Sam stepped in and closed the gap with a kick aimed for his head. Stephen blocked and countered with one of his own. Sam parried and stepped in close, launching a flurry of punches. Stephen blocked the first few and then missed one to the stomach, and Sam followed that with a right hook to the jaw and then an elbow to his gut. She jumped up and went for a roundhouse kick to his head, but Stephen dodged and countered with a couple of jabs. Sam dodged and parried and went for a punch of her own. Stephen parried it to the outside with his right hand and then brought his fist crashing down across Sam's face. He followed it with a left jab to her stomach and then sent her sprawling on the ground with his foot.  
  
Sam quickly got to her feet. The adrenaline coursing through her veins dulled the pain and put a fire in her limbs. She clenched her fists tight and charged at Stephen. She leaped at him with a kick and he blocked it and stepped behind her. Stephen slugged her in the kidney and backhanded her across the head. Sam sidestepped to avoid his next punch and kicked him hard in the knee. The blow stunned him momentarily and took him off-balance. She punched him across the face and delivered a series of lightning fast punches to the face and stomach, following them with one heel across his face and another in his stomach. Sam tried for another kick, but Stephen recovered and grabbed it. He tried to throw her but Sam used the force to launch herself into a backwards somersault and landed on her feet.  
  
"You're not half-bad, child. I see great potential in you, if you're willing to strive for it."  
  
"The only thing I see in you is a monster."  
  
"Fair enough. Terrorists aren't supposed to be nice."  
  
Stephen took the initiative this time, quickly walking in and leading off with a powerful swing. Sam ducked it and then blocked his other arm and tried to step behind him. Stephen saw this and backed into her. He drove his elbow into her stomach and then backhanded her in the face. He swiveled around and smashed his left fist into her stomach, hit her in the face with his right, and then backhanded her again. Sam quickly stepped back, but Stephen followed her movements and started throwing more attacks at her. She managed to parry one of his kicks and throw him slightly off-balance. She stepped in hard and fast and buried her right fist in his stomach and followed with a left uppercut. Stephen stumbled back and Sam followed him with a jump kick right in the center of his chest, throwing him back and on the ground for once.  
  
Sam was breathing hard now. She was sore all over, and a wet spot had formed where her wound was. Every time Stephen hit that area it sent shockwaves through her body, and the repeated blows to the head weren't doing much good for her equilibrium. Stephen started to get back to his feet. He was barely breathing harder than normal.  
  
He's just bigger, stronger, and tougher than me. That's the problem. No matter, he will go down.  
  
"I'm enjoying this, Samantha, I really am. You fight with skill and determination, traits I admire in a soldier."  
  
She took a deep breath to calm her nerves and settled into a fighting stance. "Why don't you just go back to Hell?"  
  
"I will, but not just yet."  
  
They attacked each other simultaneously. This time they had no regards for their own safety. No dancing around in and out of range and fancy footwork. They attacked each other with wild abandon; each one taking as many blows as they delivered. Sam was faster and more graceful, but Stephen was more experienced and far stronger. Sam grabbed his sleeves and drove her knee into his stomach, and then again. She went for a third strike, but Stephen broke her hold, hit her twice in the stomach, twice across the face, and kicked her in the leg, face and then launched her with a third kick to the stomach.  
  
Sam landed hard on the concrete and rolled back up onto her feet. Her body ached and her breath was ragged. She wasn't sure how much longer she could keep this pace up.  
  
Stephen approached. "Don't tell me you're spent already."  
  
"No, not by a long shot."  
  
Stephen attacked her with his feet and Sam stepped inside his kicking range. She dodged a set of fast punches and then threw a few of her own - two across the face and two more in the stomach. Stephen dodged it and pinned her arm against his side. He delivered a vicious palm strike to her chest, and Sam thought something cracked. He pulled back for another, but Sam placed one foot on his chest and then kicked off his face with the other, causing him to release her arm and stumble backwards. She ran at him and kicked him square in the jaw, then again, and again, and again. Stephen started to recover from the stunning blow, so instead of a fifth kick she jumped at him, planted one foot on his chest, and kicked off with all her might, sending him flying towards the tool shed.  
  
Stephen slammed into the flimsy door, crashed right through it and hit something heavy just inside. It was a few seconds before he managed to pull himself out of the shed. He was breathing heavier now, but appeared nowhere near as tired as Sam.  
  
"A fine hit, child. I've underestimated you." He stepped away from the shed and Sam's eyes widened when she saw what was inside. Stephen noticed her reaction and turned around. "Yes, what you're thinking is correct. This is what we're fighting over, is it not?"  
  
Just a few feet behind Stephen and less than fifteen from Sam sat the nuclear weapon.  
  
The device's lights were on and some of them were blinking. Sam wasn't sure what to make of that.  
  
"Don't worry, it's not on a timer or anything." Said Stephen. "It is armed, however, and I'm holding the detonator."  
  
"Hand it over, Stephen." Sam pleaded. "For the love of God, just don't do this."  
  
"That's impossible, I'm afraid. I'll never allow you to take me alive. You'll just have to take it from my corpse."  
  
"Please, Stephen. Why do all those people have to die? Why does anyone have to die?"  
  
"That is the world I've lived in since I was your age. That world has no use for me any longer, so I just have to leave it. That is how things have always worked."  
  
"I don't understand. We don't have to do things this way!"  
  
"I have fallen from my place in this world. It has no use for me and I have no use for it. The only thing I can do is the one thing I dedicated my life to doing; protecting my country from her enemies."  
  
Sam's breath was calming down. "A regular shooting star, aren't you?"  
  
"Come again?"  
  
"You've fallen from your high place, and now the only thing you can do is burn up everything you touch."  
  
"And that's the simple truth." Stephen looked out across the city. "My time here is ending, Samantha. Death is coming for me. It's time we ended this."  
  
Stephen charged her with all his fury. Sam could barely keep up with his assault, and took several hits from her foe. Sam finally got a chance to leap away from his relentless attack She counterattacked several times, Stephen parrying and blocking each attack. Sam barely avoided his counters and went for her own counterattack. She threw a punch to his face, and Stephen dodged out of the way, holding his left arm on the opposite side of hers. Sam saw his right arm coming forward from his hip and everything happened in slow motion. His arms collided on hers like a pair of scissors. The bones in her right arm buckled under the stress, and finally gave way with a sickening "crack!"  
  
Her arm went limp and an intense burning sensation shot through her arm, causing her to cry out in pain. Stephen stood back and watched her hold her arm and lean over, her face twisted by pain and injury. Her hair was streaked with sweat, and her shoulders heaved as her lungs struggled for oxygen. After what felt like forever, Sam stood back up straight and forced the pain into a corner of her mind. She set one foot back and held her left hand up in defense, letting her right arm hang limp and useless.  
  
"Still willing to fight?"  
  
Sam said nothing, letting her intensely focused eyes do the talking.  
  
"I see. This place is so important to you that you're still willing to fight even though you're outclassed and badly injured." He snickered. "It truly is a terrible shame that we have to be on opposite sides of this conflict."  
  
"Shut up and fight me."  
  
Stephen approached her. She threw out her good hand, but Stephen simply caught her arm with his left hand and clamped his right hand around her throat. A malicious smile crossed his face as he started to squeeze her neck and hold her arm in an iron grip. Sam couldn't breath. Her limbs began to go numb, and her vision was fading fast. She reached with her left hand, for what she didn't know. Everything started to become distant. She could see herself at Stephen's mercy, atop the building with the bomb on it. Everything was so clear now. She was going to die, and Stephen would kill all her friends in one act. Yet she wasn't afraid. She was totally at peace. She'd done everything she could, and she'd failed. There was nothing else left to do but die. It all seemed so simple to her.  
  
Suddenly Stephen changed his mind. He relaxed his grip on her throat, allowing air to rush into her lungs and blood to return to her brain. Sam's lungs took in air in ragged gasps, her eyes wide from the shock of having been to the brink of death and back. Just as she was starting to calm down from her journey to the edge, he smashed his foot into her left leg. Sam felt her leg bend where it wasn't supposed to, and she could no longer stand up. Stephen released her and tossed her against a scaffold. She collapsed to the floor, her entire body screaming in pain from head to toe. Her mind was completely clouded. She couldn't think straight for more than a few seconds. She did know one thing: this was the end.  
  
She heard the bolt of a pistol slide into place and looked up, right down the sights of Stephen's gun and into his cold, emotionless face.  
  
"I was impressed by your courage. You deserve a soldier's death."  
  
Sam's own problems faded away. Every fiber of her being wanted to reach out and strangle this man, but she couldn't even stand up. The best she could manage was remaining defiant and brave.  
  
Stephen tightened his grip. "Any last words?"  
  
Sam stared him straight in the eyes. "None you'd like to hear."  
  
"Pity." He straightened his arm and slowly began squeezing the trigger. Sam's gaze never left his eyes. She wasn't going out as a cowering captive. The whole world stood still, like it was waiting for a great event to unfold the likes of which it had never seen before.  
  
Stephen's finger pulled the trigger back farther and farther. The hammer's release mechanism was almost ready to spring. Just another millimeter.  
  
And then the elevator rang.  
  
Stephen released the trigger and pointed his gun at the elevator doors. The doors parted and Jacob casually stepped out with his hands in his pockets. He stopped when he saw the gun pointed at him.  
  
"What's this? Have you sunk to pulling a gun on unarmed men now?"  
  
"You."  
  
"You yourself, uncle."  
  
"I knew you would come."  
  
"I wasn't about to disappoint. I wouldn't miss this for the world."  
  
Stephen put his gun away. "Are you ready to hunt the last wolf, Jacob?"  
  
"I've always been hunting you, the one that got away."  
  
"I thought WOLFHOUND was done for."  
  
"WOLFHOUND'S mission won't be complete until we've captured every last wolf, and you're the last one."  
  
"Are you ready to finish this?"  
  
"Yeah. It's time I finished what I started" He took several steps away from the elevator, never taking his eyes off Stephen. "Sam, whatever happens, stay out of this. This is strictly between him and me. Nice shiner, by the way."  
  
Sam touched her left eye. The flesh around it was swollen and tender.  
  
Jacob stopped several paces from Stephen. "Just one question, before you and I are just professionals again, what was it all for?"  
  
"A dream. A dream of a Russia free from corruption; powerful, respected, and unified. That's what this is all for."  
  
"Dreams are an interpretation of reality, not its reflection."  
  
"Yet everyone has them, something to strive for that is beyond what they are actually capable of. It's part of what makes us human. What are your dreams? Even you have at least one."  
  
"I dream of a world where people like you and I are no longer necessary."  
  
"Even more far-fetched than mine."  
  
"Like you said, it's something to strive for."  
  
The two of them circled each other. Their eyes tried to bore into one another's mind, each one trying to decide what the other's first move would be. Jacob took the initiative and flew at Stephen with terrifying speed. They clashed with unbridled fury, fists flying and feet moving with poetic speed and strength.  
  
All Sam could do was sit and watch. The speed of their fight was mesmerizing, both of them delivering and defending blows with unreal precision and skill. Almost every blow looked like it could knock a full-grown man out, and they were regularly taking hits from such attacks. She started to notice distinctions in their fighting styles. Jacob was extremely fast and used his speed to add to the force of his attacks and avoid Stephen's. He was light on his feet and very loose; letting the fight move in whatever direction it wanted. Stephen, on the other hand, was much more reserved. He kept close to himself and drew Jacob in close where he could punish him with his fast fists, making more use of grappling attacks than Jacob did. For all their differences, the two of them were evenly matched.  
  
Jacob threw a pair of punches and Stephen swatted them away and countered with a pair of his own across Jacob's face. Jacob blocked a third punch and then stepped in with a series of rapid blows to Stephen's face. Stephen swung at him and Jacob ducked, hit him in the stomach, and then rose up and delivered an uppercut and followed through with a reverse roundhouse kick that sent Stephen staggering backwards. Jacob wasted no time and chased after him and swung at his head. Stephen parried under the punch and hit Jacob in the stomach and followed with another blow to the head with his other hand and then again to the stomach. He kicked him in the face with one foot and then sent Jacob to the ground with a roundhouse to the head. Jacob fell down but quickly recovered and got to his feet, sliding a bit on the wet concrete.  
  
"Why do you fight, Jacob?"  
  
"I fight to protect people from maniacs like you."  
  
They clashed again with the same terrifying force. Stephen had Jacob mostly on defense, which proved to not be such a weakness for him. They delivered and defended many attacks, their fury rising with each one. Jacob misjudged one of Stephen's movements and took a horrific blow to the stomach. It knocked the wind out of him and caused him to double over. Stephen rose up with his fists clenched together, intending to break Jacob's back. Jacob recovered and ducked out of the way and put a vicious kick into Stephen's side. Stephen started to stumble away, but Jacob caught him by the sleeve and yanked him back. Jacob's fist met Stephen's face and Jacob stooped low and rammed into Stephen with his elbow. But before he could stand up, Stephen smashed his knee into Jacob's head and immediately connected with a series of punches. Before Jacob could recover from that attack, Stephen grabbed Jacob's head with one hand and smashed his head with a palm strike from his other hand.  
  
The blow looked in all seriousness to Sam like it should have crushed Jacob's skull, but it didn't. Jacob's eyes rolled back in his head and he started to fall. He forced himself back into consciousness and stopped the fall. He held his head in his hands and tears were streaming from his eyes. His senses were so scrambled he didn't notice Stephen walking up to him. Stephen brought his arm back and prepared to bring it across Jacob's head. Jacob recovered his senses just in time to see Stephen's blow coming. He flexed his hand back, curled his fingers together, and threw every ounce of his strength into his right arm. The heel of his palm intercepted Stephen's face with enough force the throw him back almost off his feet. Jacob followed him and leaped into the air with a swift kick to the face and then punched Stephen square in the center of his body, launching him onto the concrete.  
  
Stephen began rising to his feet with difficulty. Both fighters were battered and tired, but in no condition to stop. Sam noticed something disturbing; Jacob was in worse shape than Stephen.  
  
"Oh no. He's still weak from the fever!"  
  
Jacob still looked pale and he was breathing harder than Stephen was. Stephen got back to his feet and Jacob immediately attacked him. Stephen ducked the initial punch and blocked the follow-up attack. Jacob kicked at him and Stephen blocked it and slipped around behind Jacob. He locked one of his arms in Jacob's and started hitting Jacob in the back of the head with the elbow of his free arm. Jacob wrestled himself free and turned to swing at Stephen. He dodged and struck Jacob in the stomach and face. He then grabbed him by the shoulder and pulled him down onto his knee, then elbowed him in the side of his head to knock him down. Jacob started to get back up, but Stephen walked over and kicked him in the stomach hard enough to make Jacob roll over. Stephen followed him and kicked him a few more times before Jacob caught his foot and tossed him off-balance.  
  
Stephen stumbled back several steps, giving Jacob enough time to stand back up and charge him. Jacob swung at him again and Stephen ducked like last time. This time Jacob allowed Stephen to counterattack. Jacob blocked his attack and grabbed his arm. Jacob used his free hand to strike Stephen in the kidneys and let go when Stephen swung at him, ducking the attack and striking hard and fast with a series of furious punches. Stephen backed off and Jacob tried to connect with a kick. Stephen caught it, but Jacob didn't allow Stephen to throw him. He jumped off his other foot and brought it across Stephen's face, causing him to let go. Jacob took his newly freed foot across Stephen's face and then hit him with three more kicks in rapid succession. The last kick knocked Stephen down and Jacob backed off.  
  
His was breathing heavily and looking more exhausted than ever. Sam looked over at Stephen. He was kneeling and shaking his head to clear it. He slowly stood back up. He was breathing heavily, but not half as badly as Jacob was. Sam realized Jacob wasn't going to last long at this rate. She looked around for something that would help. She knew that if Jacob lost, Stephen would detonate the bomb, no question about that. She looked to her left and spotted Jacob's gun sitting in a shadow cast by a pillar. She looked back at the fighters. They were standing still, sizing each other up. She made up her mind and slowly began crawling to the gun. She gritted her teeth as every little nudge caused her broken limbs to protest, but this was something more important than a couple of broken limbs.  
  
Meanwhile, Jacob and Stephen were at each other's throats. They had each other by the collar and were spinning around, trying desperately to attack each other. Sam looked back and marveled at how two people in the same family could fight each other to the death with such animosity. No, there was no animosity. They were just two professionals doing their jobs, and happened to be on opposite sides of a conflict. She crawled a few more feet and looked back again. They were no longer holding on to each other, but still attacking, retreating, defending, and circling. Sam thought they really did resemble wolves; vicious and powerful, noble and savage. That's the word she wanted to use to describe this fight – savage.  
  
Jacob summoned every ounce of his remaining strength and flew at Stephen. His speed surprised even Stephen, who couldn't keep up with his redoubled attacks. Stephen tried to counter, but couldn't land a single blow, while almost every one of Jacob's connected. The blows were coming so fast and strong that Stephen found himself starting to lose his equilibrium and his vision was starting to blur. Jacob grabbed Stephen by the shoulders and head butted Stephen as hard as he could in the face, and while he was down, put all of his strength into his right arm. He came up, angled his arm just slightly, and smashed it into Stephen's jaw. The blow actually knocked Stephen into the air. The angle of the punch caused him to spin slightly, and he landed flat on his face.  
  
And that was all Jacob had. He stumbled backwards a few steps. He was burning up from the fever, and his strength was completely gone. Stephen wasn't moving. Maybe it was over. Maybe he'd won. He'd defeated his uncle and stopped his nuclear threat. He could rest now, after this hellish week, he could finally rest. And did he ever need it.  
  
Stephen's fingers twitched. Jacob froze.  
  
"No, no, no, no!"  
  
Stephen's arms flexed and he placed his hands flat on the concrete. With great difficulty, be pushed himself off the concrete and on to his knees. He placed one foot underneath him and slowly and painfully stood up. Stephen was back on his feet, and mad as a hornet. He also noticed that Jacob wasn't looking well.  
  
"I don't believe this, you're weak with sickness and you came anyway, knowing it would put you at a great disadvantage. You're just like Samantha."  
  
Jacob's breath was ragged and shallow. "No, I'm just like me. That's how you guys made me, remember?"  
  
"It's a shame the experiment will have to end in such failure."  
  
"Why's that? I'm still here aren't I?"  
  
Stephen smiled. "Not for long." He rushed at Jacob. Jacob was able to defend the first few attacks, and then his strength was totally gone. He was too slow to block a punch and it found a home in his stomach. The blow knocked the wind out of him and he doubled over Stephen's fist. Stephen removed his fist and stood there. Jacob was struggling to stand back up and face him. Stephen smirked at the gesture and drove his knee into Jacob's stomach. Jacob spit up blood and went down to his knees, unable to stand up.  
  
"I hope you're ready for the afterlife, nephew. It's going to be short trip."  
  
Jacob smiled and said something inaudible.  
  
"What was that?"  
  
"Why don't you just do the whole world a favor and drop dead?"  
  
Stephen responded by kicking Jacob across the face, sprawling him out on the concrete. Jacob's lungs clawed for air and his body felt like it was on fire. There was plenty of fight left in his spirit, but his body had none left. Eventually, he was able to speak again.  
  
"So, what are you waiting for, 'Unc? Didn't you say you wanted to do this since the beginning?"  
  
"I thought you fought to protect others from people like me. What about your mission?"  
  
"I've done all I can, and it just wasn't enough. I've failed and there's nothing more I can do."  
  
"And the citizens of this city?"  
  
"Them? They're just assets. I don't really give a damn what happens to them now."  
  
"And your friends?"  
  
"They were with me all the way on this. They knew the risks."  
  
"You are a good soldier, Jacob. The world needs more people like you."  
  
"I'd prefer that not being the case."  
  
Stephen reached into his coat pocket. It took a moment, but he realized something was missing. He searched his other pockets, his disbelief rising. "Where is it?"  
  
"Looking for something?" Jacob opened one of his fists, revealing the tiny remote detonator."  
  
"How did you...?"  
  
"Heh, magicians never tell their secrets."  
  
Stephen vaguely recalled Jacob's hand passing through his coat. "Why you insolent..." he started to reach for the detonator.  
  
"HOLD IT RIGHT THERE!"  
  
Stephen froze. He looked to his right and saw Sam sitting there, the gun in her good hand and pointing right at him. Here eyes were narrowed in concentration and there was real venom behind her voice."  
  
"Drop your weapon and put your hands in the air, Stephen. It's over."  
  
Stephen sighed and relaxed his shoulders. "It would seem I'm defeated. But there is one thing I have yet to do, child."  
  
"I know, it's surrender."  
  
Stephen laughed. "Have you learned nothing about what my purpose is? I came here to quit this world, either by my hands or his." He indicated Jacob. "Since he is unable to fulfill that role, you must do it instead."  
  
Sam almost dropped the gun. "What?"  
  
Stephen drew his gun, and instead of dropping it, pointed it at Jacob. "It's time for you to make a choice, Samantha. Either he dies or I do. There is no other way out of this." He fired his gun and the bullet hit the concrete a few feet away from Jacob.  
  
Sam held the gun as steady as she could. Suddenly the whole world was on her shoulders. She felt like everyone was watching, depending on her actions alone.  
  
Stephen moved his gun and fired another shot closer to Jacob's head. "If you don't kill me, I will kill him. Only one of us may leave this tower. Which one will it be?"  
  
Sam tried to aim at the gun. She could try shooting it out of his hands. She tried to center the gun on his hand, but between her exhaustion and injury, she couldn't hold the gun still for such a precise shot. She returned the sights to the middle of Stephen's body. Still she couldn't pull the trigger.  
  
"Come on, Samantha. I'm waiting. The whole world is waiting." He fired another shot even closer to Jacob's head.  
  
Sam still couldn't bring herself to fire. Never once had she ever been placed in a situation where taking a life was necessary. Sure she'd let Jacob do plenty of killing, but he was trained, even born for it. No, she still couldn't bear to take the life of another, no matter how despicable he was.  
  
"Please, Stephen. Don't make me do this! Just surrender! I'm sure WOOHP will treat you well!"  
  
"I don't care. I'm sick of all of this. I'm sick of the corruption, the violence, the hatred, and the arrogance of man. But this is not about me, Sam." Sam noticed that he'd used her nickname. "This is about you. I said you have great potential. Are you able to realize it, or will you always be second-rate?" He fired another shot just a few inches from Jacob's head. "It's not difficult. Simply point the gun and make a fist."  
  
"Please, Stephen. Don't do this. I don't want anyone else to die. There's been too many already."  
  
Stephen's voice became forceful. "This is the decisive moment, Sam!" He pointed the gun right at Jacob's head. "It's him or me! If this city is worth saving, then prove to me that there is one thing in this whole God-forsaken city worth saving and shoot!"  
  
Jacob's eyes pleaded with Sam to take the shot. Sam realized then that his life was in her hands. If she did nothing, he would die right in front of her on an unfinished apartment building in the middle of LA. He might not even get a proper funeral, since his existence was a classified secret. She looked back at Stephen, his finger tightening around the trigger. She realized something. Stephen wasn't just trying to take their lives. He was trying to take their future. If he got away, neither she nor Alex nor Clover nor anyone she cared about had a future. She saw layers peeling off Stephen like an onion. He wasn't a father. He wasn't a husband. He wasn't a general. He wasn't an uncle. He wasn't even a man. He was just a terrorist bent on one thing – death and destruction.  
  
Sam tightened her grip, steadied her arm, and made a fist.  
  
She barely heard the gun go off. She didn't even feel it jump in her hand. When her senses returned, Stephen was lying on the ground and Jacob was trying to sit back up. He leaned over Stephen and they exchanged a few words in Russian. Stephen closed his eyes and breathed his last.  
  
Jacob stood up with great difficulty. He staggered over the tool shed and knelt beside the bomb. He opened a panel and tore a circuit board out. The lights on the bomb went dark, and Sam breathed a sigh of relief.  
  
Jacob got back up and limped over to where Sam was sitting and wearily plopped down around the corner of the pillar from her. He withdrew his communicator and pressed the call button.  
  
"Den Mother, this is Wolfhound. The prey is secure. Home in on my signal." He let the device drop to the concrete and leaned back against the pillar. Sam felt something cool on her cheek. She looked up and saw that it was starting to rain again. She closed her eyes and let the tiny drops dot her face. Sam could already feel the memories of the horrors she'd witnessed over the past week washing away with the rain. The cool rain felt good on Jacob's feverish skin. They sat there for a few minutes, trying to catch their breaths and simply reveling in the joy of a completed mission.  
  
"Hey Sam," Jacob said after a few minutes.  
  
"Yeah?"  
  
"Good job, kid. You really surpassed my expectations."  
  
"Thanks. It was the least I could do."  
  
"Hey Sam?"  
  
"What?"  
  
"You're not a rookie anymore, not in my book."  
  
"Thanks." Sam looked down at his hand. Both their knuckles were bruised from the fight.  
  
"What did Stephen say?"  
  
"He said, 'I guess this world is in good hands after all,' and then how to disarm the bomb."  
  
"Oh."  
  
"You okay, Sam?"  
  
"Let's see. I've got an open bullet wound, a broken arm, a broken leg, probably some cracked ribs, and I've been beaten to a pulp. How about you?"  
  
"I've got a raging fever and I just got my butt handed to me by my own uncle."  
  
"Well then, I guess we're just fine, then."  
  
"Yeah." It started with a chuckle, and then they both started laughing good and hard until a jolt in Sam's arm and a hacking cough from Jacob cut the laughter off. They opted to sit there and let the rain fall until Sam's Compowder chimed. She opened it up and saw Jerry and MacDonald on the screen.  
  
"Jerry! What's happening?"  
  
"Sam, what happened?"  
  
"It's over now, Jerr. It's all over."  
  
"You mean you've stopped Stephen?"  
  
"I had a little help." She angled the Compowder so they could see Jacob around the corner. He gave a weak wave and a "yo."  
  
Sam noticed that MacDonald was wearing his uniform again. "Any changes back at WOOHP?"  
  
"Yes, why don't you tell her, Jeff?"  
  
"The President found out about the Secretary of Defense's little stunt and got plenty mad about it. He's sent him on a little vacation and restored full control of the operation to me. I guess it's a bit late for that."  
  
"So the FBI's off our case, then?"  
  
"Yes."  
  
Jerry interrupted. "We've located Jacob's signal and are dispatching a WOOHP ship to pick you up. Where are you?"  
  
"On the roof of the Solomon Carlita Estates."  
  
"I see. Alex has insisted that she ride out to meet you."  
  
"Good, I hope she's not too worried."  
  
MacDonald spoke up. "Sam, I really have to hand it to you and your friends. The odds were stacked against you and you all came through with flying colors. Everyone over here is truly impressed."  
  
"Don't mention it."  
  
"Jacob, I look forward to our next assignment together."  
  
"Next one? We always work together, Jeff."  
  
"Not for your next assignment we're not. I've decided its time for this old man to take a sabbatical. I think I'll run back up to Maine and finish that biography I've been putting off."  
  
"A biography? Who's it on?"  
  
"I'll let you know when I'm finished."  
  
"Send me a copy, will ya?"  
  
"If that's possible, I will."  
  
"See you next time, Jeff."  
  
"Take care, you two." MacDonald signed off.  
  
"The zip craft should be there any minute." Said Jerry. "Are you two alright?"  
  
"I think we've both seen better days, but we'll live." Said Jacob.  
  
"All right then, I'll see you back here. Congratulations on a job well done." Jerry signed off and Sam closed her Compowder.  
  
The rain continued to fall in a light spray. It fell just hard enough to cover everything in a wet sheen, but not enough to soak the two tired spies. She turned to Jacob. He was totally spent. It was all he could do to stay awake.  
  
"So, what's gonna happen to you now?"  
  
"They'll probably give me some time to recover, then a few days off after that. Then it's back to work as usual."  
  
"Work? You call this a job?"  
  
"Yep. And despite the shape I'm in, I still enjoy doing this."  
  
"Because you enjoy protecting others?"  
  
"Yeah, that's about right."  
  
Sam knew they were about to part ways, but didn't want it to happen.  
  
"Think we'll ever see each other again?"  
  
"Probably not. It's a bad idea for people like me to form attachments, especially to other people."  
  
"That's cruel, don't you think?"  
  
"Yeah, but it's necessary."  
  
"Why?"  
  
"Because when you're in the field, people are just assets – a means to an end. Getting attached to them can be disastrous to the mission."  
  
"Am I just an asset?"  
  
"No, not at all."  
  
"A partner?"  
  
"No, you're a friend, Sam. And someone I'm glad I've had the honor of meeting."  
  
The WOOHP ship appeared overhead and came to a halt over the roof.  
  
"Is this where we say goodbye?"  
  
"Yeah. I'm sorry Sam, but this is how it has to be."  
  
"Doesn't mean I have to like it."  
  
"No, it sure doesn't."  
  
"See you, Jacob."  
  
"Goodbye Sam."  
  
The ship descended to the roof, its engines scattering the rain and blowing water everywhere. The landing lights scanned the roof and found Stephen's body, and then found Sam and Jacob sitting there, half-dead and glad to see the ship. 


	13. Epilogue

Epilogue  
  
Sam sat in her wheelchair on the veranda. Her laptop sat on the table with her half-finished homework displayed. A few puffy clouds dotted the serene blue sky, and the sun lent its warmth to everything its light touched. Normally she'd be done with it already, but she couldn't find any motivation to complete it today. It wasn't the fact that she only had her left hand to type with, or that she was sick or anything. The problem was, every time she sat down to try and finish it, her mind would wander to somewhere else.  
  
She still couldn't stop thinking about the events of last week. She'd seen the darker side of the spy world and humanity. Yet she'd also seen some truly great things. People both good and bad motivated by convictions that ran deep into their souls. She'd seen selfless displays of courage and friendship. She'd experienced deep horrors and great joys. This would really be one for the scrapbook, if she were allowed to say anything about it.  
  
Her casts already had an impressive collection of signatures, those of Alex and Clover by far the largest. Even Mandy had pity on Sam when Clover wheeled her in through the front doors at school. At least their collection of injuries made for good conversation at school. Their cover was absolutely mundane compared to the truth. They had considered all the possible explanations, and finally settled on a car wreck as the best excuse for their injuries. Sam kept her bullet wound covered, however, because she still didn't know how to explain that one. She'd just have to put some of her clothes away until it healed.  
  
She saw Alex's car come down the driveway and go around to the side of the house. She listened and heard her mother let them in and tell them where she was. Alex and Clover appeared at the door shortly. Alex was on crutches and Clover's hand was in a cast. When the ship had landed to pick up Sam and Jacob, Alex was the first one off the ship and had jumped off before the ramp had even opened completely, so concerned she was for her friend. However, she'd landed wrong and rolled her ankle, causing it to sprain. Thus all three of them ended up needing to be helped into the carrier.  
  
Alex smiled and walked onto the veranda. "Hi Sam! How's it going?"  
  
"Fine. I can't seem to get this homework done."  
  
"Sam, you'd better not be slipping on us." Said Clover. "I am not going to fail because my study partner stopped doing her homework."  
  
"I'll do it, just not right now." Sam closed the laptop as Alex and Clover pulled up chairs  
  
"Anything from Jerry?" asked Alex.  
  
"Nothing aside from condolences and good luck wishes and the occasional checkup."  
  
"Same here. It is kind of a relief to know we're not going on any missions for a while."  
  
Clover suppressed a giggle.  
  
"What's so funny?"  
  
"I'm sorry, I just can't help but think of everyone's reaction when we walked in looking like a football team on a bad day."  
  
It had been a strange moment that day. The three of them walked into school at the same time, Alex on crutches, Sam in a wheelchair with her leg in a cast and her arm in a sling, and Clover with a cast on her wrist and her arm in a sling. The entire hallway had paused to look at them for what felt like forever. Immediately they'd become the talk of the entire high school.  
  
"So, anything in the news, yet?" asked Clover.  
  
"Nope. I've checked a lot of sites, too. There are reports of police activity, but nothing specific. I guess they did a good job with the cover-up."  
  
"Just as well." Said Alex. "I'd rather not be reminded of that experience for a long time, if you ask me."  
  
Sam's mother walked in with the mail. "Sam, you've got a letter."  
  
"Who's it from?"  
  
"One of your friends, I guess. I can't ever keep track of them." She handed the envelope to Sam.  
  
Sam didn't recognize the name or the handwriting. "Who the heck is this from?"  
  
Alex craned her neck to look at it. "Maybe it's a secret admirer!"  
  
"Yeah, right!"  
  
"Open it!"  
  
"Fine, fine. Uh, could you do it for me, Alex?"  
  
"Will I!" Alex tore the envelope open and started reading the letter.  
  
"Hey, that's mine! Don't read my mail!"  
  
"It's from Jacob."  
  
A bird chirped somewhere close by. The wind carried a few leaves past the veranda. A butterfly settled on Sam's laptop for a few seconds before taking off again.  
  
"Well, go ahead and read it," Said Clover.  
  
Alex looked back to make sure Sam's family wasn't nearby.  
  
Dear Sam, Alex, and Clover:  
  
Once again, I have to congratulate the three of you on a job well done. I'm sorry that you had to see some of the things you saw, but that is the world I work in. It's dangerous and dirty. But let's not dwell on that. It's time we put all that behind us.  
  
I'm feeling better now, and as I write this I'm packing for my next assignment. Naturally, I can't say where it is. But I will say that it's about as far from Los Angeles as you can get, geographically and culturally. I pray for a speedy recovery for all of you, especially Sam. You really took a beating back there, and you took it like a champ. I have to wonder if your head is reinforced with something other than bone, because I also know what Stephen's hits felt like. They hurt!  
  
I had my doubts about you girls at first, but you performed like pros. It was a real pleasure working with all of you. You exceeded all of my expectations and really came through in the end. I'd be honored to work with you again, but I'm afraid that's not very likely. I don't even know when I'll be setting foot on US shores again, that's how uncertain this business is.  
  
The last thing I wanted to say was this: Keep having fun. You've got all the years of your youth still ahead of you so don't squander them. As you know, I've been employed by the government since my early teens, so I never got to know what it's like to ask that girl you've had a crush on to the prom, or the anxiety of semester projects or whatever hoopla kids have to worry about. Time is precious, girls. When a minute passes it's gone forever. Make the absolute best of the time you have, because there's no telling what tomorrow holds. It was great meeting all of you. I hope that someday, be it by chance or fate, we'll meet again.  
  
Jacob Ravask  
  
P.S. Clover, don't throw the sling away. Your arm might have a hairline fracture the X-ray didn't see and your hand might not heal properly if you take it off too soon.  
  
Alex finished reading the letter and set it on the table. Sam picked it up and read over it herself. When she finished it, she leaned back against the wheelchair and started fanning herself lazily with the letter. Clover dug her sling out of her purse and put it back on.  
  
"Whatcha thinking about, Sammie?"  
  
"Just wondering what'll become of Jacob, and us eventually."  
  
"Let's not worry about it." Said Clover. "Jacob can take care of himself. And it's like he said. We should make the best of our time, and I think we can start doing that by going to the movies!"  
  
"Yeah!" said Alex. "I wanna see that new zombie movie they've been advertising!"  
  
Clover and Sam stared at her.  
  
"Or we could go see that movie about the boat race instead!" She said sheepishly.  
  
"You know what?" Sam said as she folded the letter up. "I wanted to see that one, too. How about it, Clover?"  
  
Clover hesitated for a moment. She really wanted to see one of the teen comedies that came out recently, but she decided she was outvoted, and the star of that movie was a hunk. "Alright, sure, let's go!"  
  
Sam put the letter in her purse and Clover wheeled her off the veranda. They had a fine time at the movie, and chased it with milkshakes and fries. After Sam returned home, she went to her room and dug out her keepsake box. She placed the letter in the box and hid it again. She then turned her laptop back on and finished her homework before going to bed early.  
  
THE END 


End file.
